1 


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Digitized  by 

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The  Committee  on  Publications  of  the 
Grolier  Club  certifies  that  this  copy  of 
"Notable  Printers  of  Italy  during  the  Fif- 
teenth Century"  is  from  an  edition  of  four 
hundred  copies  printed  in  the  summer  of 
the  year  1909.  Three  hundred  copies  on 
plain  and  three  copies  on  Japan  paper  are 
for  the  Grolier  Club,  and  ninety- seven 
copies  are  reserved  for  the  author. 


NOTABLE 
PRINTERS  OF  ITALY  DURING  THE 
FIFTEENTH  CENTURY 


NOTABLE 
PRINTERS  OF  ITALY  DURING  THE 
FIFTEENTH  CENTURY 


ILLUSTRATED  WITH 
FACSIMILES  FROM  EARLY  EDITIONS 

AND  WITH 

REMARKS  ON  EARLY  AND  RECENT  PRINTING 

BY 

THEODORE  LOW  DEVINNE 


THE  GROLIER  CLUB 
OF  THE  CITY  OF  NEW  YORK 
1910 


Copyright,  1910,  by 
Thbodoee  Low  DeVinne 


CONTENTS 

Page 

Introduction   15 

Early  Italian  Books   21 

The  Older  Roman  Alphabets     .    .  29 

Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  ....  37 

Conrad  Sweinheim    49 

Ulric  Hahn    53 

John  Philip  de  Lignamine     ...  56 

George  Herolt   58 

George  Laner   60 

John  and  Wendelin  of  Speyer  .    .  65 

Wendelin  of  Speyer   68 

ISTicolas  Jen  son   72 

Andrew  Torresano   79 

Bartholomew  of  Cremona  ....  82 

Erhard  Ratdolt   85 

Franz  Renner    88 

Jacob  Rubens    92 

Baptista  de  Tortis   94 

Bartholomew  de  Zanis   98 

Aldus  Manutius   100 

John  N"umeister    117 

Sixtus  Riessinger   119 

Antonio  Miscomini   121 

3 


Contents 


Page 

Antonio  Zarotto    123 

The  Ripoli  Press      .......  127 

Caligula  Bazalerio   128 

Ulric  Gering   131 

Claude  Garamond   134 

Large  and  Small  Types   137 

Type-Founding   147 

Printing  Ink   159 

Paper   163 

Composition   171 

The  Hand  Press   187 

Authorities   201 

Index   203 


FACSIMILES 


Plate  Page 

The  R  Printer  of  Strasburg,  1465-70  ....  20 

Sophologium  of  lac  le  Grand.   Hain  *10471.   Proctor  240. 

1  Manuscrix3t  on  vellum.    Unknown  scribe    .    .  25 

De  Oratore  of  Cicero. 

From  library  of  Mr.  H.  C.  Hoskier  of  the  Grolier  Club. 

2  Antonio  Zarotto.    Milan,  1490    27 

The  Sforziada  of  Giovanni  Simonetta.  Proctor  5828. 
Illuminated  Manuscripts  of  the  British  Museum. 

Latin  Uncials  and  Minuscules   31 

The  Alphabet  by  Dr.  Isaac  Taylor. 

3  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz.    Subiaco,  1465    .    .  39 

Lactantius.    Hain  9806.  Proctor  3288. 

Prom  library  of  Mr.  Robert  Hoe  of  the  Grolier  Club. 

4  Reproduction  of  the  Types  of  the  Lactantius  41 

Mr.  C.  H.  St.  John  Hornby's  reprint  of  the  Inferno  of 
Dante.  1902. 


5    Sweinheim  and  Pannartz.    Rome,  1470   ...  43 

Hleronymi  Epistolae.    Hain  *8552.    Proctor  3312. 
5 


Facsimiles 

Plate  Page 

6  Arnold  Pannartz.    Rome,  1476    47 

St.  Thomae  Questiones  de  Veritate.    Hain  *1420. 
Proctor  3533, 

7  Conrad  Sweinlieim.    Rome,  1478    48 

Map  of  Sardinia  from  Geography  of  Ptolemy. 
Hain  13537.   Proctor  3613. 

8  Conrad  Sweinlieim,    Rome,  1478    51 

Geography  of  Ptolemy. 

Edition  of  Peter  de  Torre.     Rome,  1490.  Hain  *13541. 

Proctor  3966. 
From  library  of  Mr.  H.  C.  Hoskier. 

9  Ulric  Halm,    Rome,  1475    55 

Albertus  de  Eyb :  Summa  Oratorum  Omnium. 
Hain  *6819.    Proctor  3364. 

10  John  Philip  de  Lignamine.    Rome,  1482  ...  57 

Oratio  in  vitnm  et  merita  divi  S.  Bonaventure. 
Hain  *10830. 

11  George  Herolt.    Rome,  1481   59 

Origenis  Prosemium  contra  Celsum.    Hain  *12078. 
Proctor  3921. 

12  George  Lauer.    Rome,  1470    61 

Joannes  Chrysostomus :  Homilse.  Hain  *5036. 

Proctor  3402. 
From  collection  of  Mr.  H.  C.  Hoskier. 


13 


A  Printer  at  Rome,  1474   

Satires  of  Juvenal.    Hain  *9690.    Proctor  3457. 

6 


63 


Facsimiles 

Plate  Page 

14  John  and  Wendelin  of  Speyer.     Venice,  1470.  67 

Livy:  Decades.    Hain  10130.    Proctor  4023. 

15  Wendelin  of  Speyer.    Venice,  1475    71 

Commentary  of  John  Duns  Scotus  on  tlie  Four  Books 
of  Sentences  by  Thomas  Aquinas.  Hain  *6454:. 
Proctor  4411. 

16  Mcolas  Jenson.    Venice,  1471   73 

Quintilianus :  Institutiones  Oratorise.    Hain  *13647. 
Proctor  4073. 

17  John  of  Cologne  and  JS'icolas  Jenson. 

Venice,  1481   77 

John  Duns  Scotus  on  the  Third  Book  of  Sentences. 
Hain  *6418. 

18  Andrew  Torresano.    Venice,  1498    80 

The  Decretals  of  Pope  G-regory.    Hain  *8036. 
Proctor  4744. 

19  Bartholomew  of  Cremona.    Venice,  1472    .    .  83 

Vergili  Maronis  Opera.    Proctor  4223. 

20  Eatdolt,  Loslein  and  Maler.    Venice,  1477  .    .  84 

Appianus  Alexandrinus  de  "bellis  civilibus.    Hain  *1307. 
Proctor  4368. 

21  Erhard  Eatdolt.    Venice,  1483    86 

The  Chronicles  of  Eusebius.    Hain  *6717.    Proctor  4390. 

22  Franz  Eenner.    Venice,  1472    89 

Caracciolus :  Quadragesimale  de  penitentia.  Hain  *4427. 
Proctor  4154. 

7 


Facsimiles 

Plate  Page 

23  Franz  Renner.    Venice,  1478    91 

Johannes  de  Sacrobosco:  Spheera  Mundi.     Hain  *14108. 
Proctor  4175. 

24  Jacob  Rubens.    Venice,  1474    93 

Herodotus  of  Halicarnassus.    Hain  *8469.    Proctor  4236. 

25  Baptista  de  Tortis.    Venice,  1483    95 

Silius  Italicus:  Punica.    Hain  *14739.    Proctor  4619. 

26  Bartholomew  de  Zanis.    Venice,  1496  ....  97 

Plutarch's  Lives.    Hain  *13130.    Proctor  5335. 

Portrait  of  Aldus  Manutius  100 

From  Firmin-Didot's  Aide  Manuce  et  I'Hell^nisme  h 
Venise. 

Aldus  Manutius.    Venice,  1495   lOl 

Greek  type  from  the  Works  of  Aristotle.    Hain  *1657. 
Proctor  5547. 

Imprint  of  Bartholomew  Trot  108 

27  Aldus  Manutius.    Venice,  1502    109 

statins,  cum  Orthographia  et  Flexus  Dictionum  Graecarum. 
Brunet,  V,  col.  512. 

Small  Greek  Tjrpe  of  Statins  of  1502    .    .    .    .  in 


Woodcut  of  Hypnerotomachia  of  1499     ...  112 
8 


Facsimiles 

Page 

Device  of  Aldus  as  shown  in  Statins  of  1502  .  113 


Portrait  of  Panl  Manntius   114 

From  Renouard's  Annales  de  I'lmprimerie  des  Aide. 

28  Paul  Manutius.    Venice,  1566   115 

Preface  to  Orthographise  Ratio  ab  Aldo  Manutio,  etc. 
Brunet,  III,  col.  1384. 

29  John  E'umeister.    Foligno,  1470    116 

Aretinus:  de  Bello  Italico.    Hain  1558.    Proctor  5721. 
From.  Hawkins's  Titles  of  tlie  First  Books  from  the 
Earliest  Presses. 

30  Sixtus  Eiessinger.    I^aples,  1471  (?)  us 

Plialaridls  Epistolse.    Hain  12883. 

31  Antonio  Miscomini.    Florence,  c,  1483      ...  120 

S.  Agostino:  de  la  Citt^  di  Deo.    Hain  *2071. 
Proctor  6145. 

32  Antonio  Zarotto.    Milan,  1481  122 

Aeneas  Sylvius:  de  Conventn  Mantuano.    Hain  *169. 
Proctor  5809. 

33  Filippo  de  Lavagna.    Milan,  c.  1476   125 

Eusebius,  annotated  by  Hieronymus.    Hain  6716. 
Proctor  5851. 

34  The  Eipoli  Press.    Florence,  1477    126 

S.  Antoninus:  Confessionale  Volgare.    Hain  1221. 
Proctor  6095. 

35  Caligula  Bazalerio.    Bologna,  1498    129 

Statuta  et  Decreta  Communis  Genuae.    Hain  *15007. 
Proctor  6619. 

9 


Facsimiles 


Plate 


Page 


36    Ulric  Gering.    Paris,  1483 


130 


Postils  of  Nicolas  de  Lyra  on  tlie  Psalter.    Ham  10378. 
Proctor  7868. 


37    Claude  Garamond.    Paris,  c.  1520 


135 


Roman  and  Italic  letter. 


Bastard  title  in  Statins  of  1502 


137 


Iraprint  at  end  of  Statins  of  1502 


137 


38    Christopher  Froschover.    Znrich,  1543  ....  139 

Biblia  Sacrosancta.    Copinger,  p.  308. 


Livy.    Brunet,  III,  col.  1107. 


40  Presswork  and  Composition  as  done  in  1520  .  189 

Device  of  Jodocus  Badius  of  Paris. 

Presswork  and  Composition  as  done  in  1564    .  189 

From  Jost  Amman's  Book  of  Trades. 

Early  Inking  Balls  189 

A  playing  card  of  the  sixteenth  century,  from  Chatto. 

41  Unidentified  Printer  at  Lyons,  1499    ....  195 

The  Dance  of  Death. 


39    Daniel  Elzevir.    Amsterdam,  1678 


142 


PREFACE 


Early  types  can  be  examined  to  best  advantage  in  early 
books,  where  they  present  many  characteristic  adjuncts  in 
the  ink,  paper,  and  impression  given  to  them  on  publication. 
Yet  readers  find  the  study  of  old  types  really  difficult.  Old 
books  printed  with  these  early  types  are  seldom  seen  outside 
of  large  libraries,  and  even  there  a  book  most  desired  may 
not  be  found,  nor  may  two  or  more  books  showing  the  differ- 
ent styles  of  notable  py^inters  be  readily  compared. 

Facsimiles  of  early  types,  as  made  by  the  bibliographers 
of  the  eighteenth  century  and  even  later,  are  often  unsatis- 
factory. They  usually  appear  in  the  form  of  detached  lines 
or  short  paragraphs  that  have  been  traced  by  hand  on  trans- 
parent paper  and  transferred  to  blocks  of  wood  or  plates  of 
copper.  The  competent  engravers  of  these  tracings  have  not 
always  been  happy  in  making  acceptable  counterfeits.  The 
reader  has  had  to  wait  for  the,  combination  of  photoyraphy 
with  chemical  engraving  before  a  printing  surface  could  be 
produced  that  would  be  fairly  trustworthy.  Facsimiles  of 
early  types  drawn  and  engraved  by  hand  and  printed  on  stone 
or  copper  lack  many  of  the  typographic  mannerisms  that  can 
be  produced  only  from  a  printing  surface  in  relief.  Even 
when  most  carefully  engraved,  detached  lines  or  slwrt  para- 
graphs are  scant  and  unsatisfactory. 

11 


Preface 

The  facsimiles  usually  attempted  are  those  of  types  from 
famx)us  printers^  which  often  lead  a  hasty  readier  to  unsafe 
conclusions.  There  were  many  able  printers  in  Italy  dur- 
iny  the  fifteenth  century,  yet  the  Roman  type  of  Jenson,  in 
one  face  only,  has  been  exhibited  for  many  years  as  the  true 
model  of  yood  form.  Duriny  this  period  types  of  merit  were 
made  by  Hahn,  Herolt,  Miscomini,  Ratdolt,  and  Renner,  but 
their  merits  have  been  neylected  and  not  acknowledyed.  There 
were  also  unskilled  printers.  To  correctly  understand  the 
peculiar  typoyraphy  of  the  time  the  facsimiles  of  amateurs  as 
well  as  those  of  famous  printers  are  really  needed. 

To  shjow  old  types  properly  it  seems  necessary  to  present 
them  of  the  exact  size  of  the  oriyinals  and  with  the  yenerous 
maryin  that  was  then  custoinary.  The  full-paye  facsimiles 
here  shown  are  not  hackneyed  as  illustrations;  nearly  all  of 
them  have  been  photo-enyraved  direct  from  old  books,  mainly 
in  the  collectums  of  the  writer  and  of  fellow-members  of  the 
Grolier  Club,  and  are  here  reprinted  for  the  first  time.  Types 
of  famous  books  only  have  not  been  preferred;  illustrations 
have  been  selected  to  show  the  different  faces  of  Roman  type 
more  or  less  acceptable  to  early  Italian  book  buyers.  That  they 
are  of  unequal  merit  is  to  be  expected,  but  they  are  of  value 
as  evidences  of  the  slow  improvement  of  type-foundiny  and 
of  frequent  chanyes  in  methods  of  composition  and  in  theplan- 
niny  and  makiny  of  books.  To  these  facsimiles  have  been 
added  brief  notices  of  the  service  rendered  by  their  printers. 
Explanatio7i  has  also  been  attempted  of  sotne  of  the  peculiar- 
ities in  old  paper,  composition,  and  presswork. 


12 


INTRODUCTION 


As  a  rule  we  should  go  to  tlie  old 
printers  not  so  much,  for  models 
to  be  slavishly  followed  as  for 
ideas  which  can  he  adopted  and 
improved  hy  modern  appliances 
and  modern  skill. 

POLLARD. 


NOTABLE  PRINTERS  OF  ITALY  DURING 
THE  FIFTEENTH  CENTURY 


INTRODUCTION 

4  PRINTED  book  of  the  fifteenth  century,  intelligently 
/A  planned  and  put  together,  has  mechanical  merits 
JL  that  command  respect  even  when  its  subject-matter 
is  of  small  interest.  Its  paper,  rarely  harmed  by  time,  is 
white  and  clear,  seldom  thick,  but  smooth  and  strong;  its 
margins  are  usually  ample,  with  a  generous  provision  of 
white  space  for  the  subsequent  insertion  of  the  initials  and 
borders  of  the  illuminators,  or  the  annotations  of  a  studious 
or  critical  reader;  its  text- types,  of  twenty- three  capital 
and  twenty-four  lower-case  letters,  larger  than  those  of  the 
ordinary  modern  book,  are  more  easily  discerned,  and  show 
a  visible  lane  of  relieving  white  space  between  lines.  It 
has  the  mannerisms  of  its  own  time  in  abbreviations,  thin 
spacing  between  words,  and  compact  composition,  but  it 
does  not  annoy  the  reader  with  profligate  use  of  Italic,  small 
capitals,  and  types  of  display. 

15 


Standards  of  valm  are  capricmis 

An  early  binding  of  large  size  fairly  represents  simplicity 
with  dignity.  At  first  glance  it  shows  workmanship  made 
for  use  more  than  for  show.  The  tall  folio  was  bound  in 
boards  of  wood  covered  with  tooled  or  stamped  calf,  fastened 
with  thongs  of  leather  or  clasps  of  bronze;  the  prayer-book 
or  classic  text  of  small  leaf  was  cased  in  vellum  or  pigskin 
and  tied  with  tapes;  but  strong  sewing  and  honest  work- 
manship are  as  noticeable  in  books  of  small  as  of  large  size. 
A  modern  cloth-bound  book  of  large  edition  that  has  been  com- 
mercially made  at  a  competitive  rate  will  suffer  in  comparison 
with  the  old  book  that  has  been  separately  bound  to  order. 

The  bibliophile  has  strong  binding  to  add  to  other  reasons 
in  his  preference  for  old  books,  but  binding  and  even  illus- 
trations of  high  merit  are  adjuncts  only.  To  most  readers 
paper  and  binding  are  but  vehicles  that  bear  the  more  val- 
ued burden  of  the  author's  thoughts  expressed  in  printing 
types.  The  first  purpose  of  the  book  is  to  be  read;  it  was 
not  made  to  be  shown  or  sold  as  an  exhibit  of  skill  in  the 
crafts  of  paper-making,  type-founding,  engraving,  or  bind- 
ing. Print  occupies  the  largest  part  of  the  space  and  con- 
sequently receives  the  closest  scrutiny;  as  a  rule  the  type 
of  every  book  receives  the  first  consideration. 

Other  standards  are  frequently  used  for  adjudging  value. 
Fifteenth-century  books  may  be  prized  for  more  than  plain 
print  or  honest  workmanship.  Rarity  is  always  important. 
To  some  collectors  it  is  a  great  pleasure  to  be  the  owner  of 
the  only  known  copy  of  a  book  of  celebrity.  A  first  edition 
is  of  more  value  than  a  second,  even  if  the  later  edition  has 
been  made  accurate  with  needed  corrections.  The  book- 
seller's phrases  of  "limited  edition,"  "scarce,"  "rare," 
"nni(|ue,"  indicate  the  scale  of  gradually  increasing  prices, 
largely  governed  by  priority. 

IG 


Mannerisms  make  early  books  attractive 

Books  may  undergo  some  unexpected  reverses.  When  new, 
adapted  in  manner  and  matter  to  popular  taste,  they  meet 
ready  sale  and  a  fair  appreciation ;  hut  when,  to  the  readers 
of  the  next  century,  they  hecome  old-fashioned  as  to  type 
and  form,  order  is  often  given  to  depose  them  from  the 
shelves  they  have  encumhered,  and  to  send  them  to  dealers 
in  second-hand  books  who  may  sell  them  for  small  sums. 
Most  hooks  of  celehrity  have  suffered  this  fate.  Copies  of 
good  works  from  famous  printing  houses  have  appealed  from 
street  book- stalls  to  passers-by,  often  in  vain,  for  a  purchaser 
who  would  pay  but  a  small  portion  of  the  first  price.  At 
long  intervals  a  curious  book  buyer  may  discover  in  an  un- 
expected place  a  book  of  great  merit  at  low  price,  and  his 
good  luck  as  its  purchaser  may  stimulate  another  buyer  to 
search  for  other  lost  children  of  literature.  It  follows  that 
old  books  of  merit  have  been  slowly  but  steadily  increasing 
in  value.  ^ 

Conformity  to  modern  notions  about  the  arrangement  of 
types  is  never  expected  by  the  collector.  Lines  of  type 
may  be  thin  spaced  to  indistinctness,  paragraphs  welded 
together  in  confusion,  words  and  phrases  abbreviated  unin- 
teUigibly,  punctuation  neglected,  and  capital  letters  used 
without  system;  but  these  eccentricities  do  not  hurt  but 
help  the  attractiveness  of  the  old  book.    When  it  is  of  a 

'  A  rare  copy  of  the  Bible  of  Forty-two  rated  so  high.    The  Lactautius  of  Sweinheim 

Lines,onvelhim  in  tliree  volumes  folio, vahied  and  Pannartz,  the  first  book  printed  in 

by  its  late  owner  at  $25,000,  is  now  in  the  Eoman  type,  Subiaco,  1465,  was  sold  at 

library  of  Eobert  Hoe.    The  Psalter  of  1457  auction,  in  1891,  for  $540;  the  Virgil  of 

was  recently  priced  by  a  London  bookseller  Aldus,  Venice,  1501,  in  1888,  for  £145; 

at  £5000.  A  First  Folio  of  Shakspere  sold  at  the  Homer  of  Florence,  1488,  in  1908,  for 

auction  in  London  early  in  1907  for  £3600,  $330.    A  very  high  price  for  an  early  Italian 

the  Third  Folio  for  £1550.   Caxton's  Dictes  book  is  that  of  the  Decameron  of  Valdarfer, 

and  Sayinges  of  Philosophers  was  sold  in  1471,  which  was  sold  at  London,  in  1812, 

1897  for  £1320,  and  an  imperfect  copy  of  for  £2260,  the  buyer  believing  that  it  was 

his  Golden  Legend  for  £465.     Books  from  the  only  surviving  copy  of  the  proscribed 

early  printing  houses  of  Italy  have  not  been  edition. 

17 


4f 


Black-lette7'  rarely  selected  for  modern  books 

notable  edition,  or  bears  the  imprint  of  a  famous  printer, 
eccentricities  are  disregarded.  The  buyer  expects  to  find 
in  his  prized  old  book  all  the  mannerisms  of  its  own  time. 
He  does  not  read  it  for  instruction  or  amusement,  or  even 
consult  it  as  a  reference  book  of  final  authority  when  a 
modern  edition  of  the  same  book  is  at  hand,  for  he  may 
have  doubts  of  the  sagacity  of  the  earlier  editor  and  of  the 
accuracy  of  a  text  that  has  since  received  wise  correction. 
Faults  of  many  kinds  must  be  tolerated,  but  with  all  their 
faults  incunabula  are  always  precious ;  they  mark  the  evolu- 
tion from  old  to  new  methods  of  book-making,  and  for  that 
reason,  if  for  no  other,  they  receive  respect  and  even  a 
qualified  reverence. 

Respect  has  not  always  been  wisely  bestowed.  Praise 
fairly  due  to  some  early  books  has  been  conceded  unwisely 
to  too  many.  Eulogies  of  the  general  superiority  of  fif- 
teenth-century typography,  written  by  critics  a  long  time 
afterward  when  the  printing  of  the  seventeenth  century 
was  in  its  lowest  estate,  were  justifiable  then  but  are  not 
warrantable  now.  An  old  book  may  be  highly  esteemed  for 
its  age  and  rarity,  for  its  quaint  mannerisms  or  its  associa- 
tion with  a  famous  editor,  printer,  binder,  or  owner;  but 
these  peculiarities  need  not  invest  it  with  a  sacredness  that 
puts  it  beyond  examination  and  comparison.  The  reading 
world  of  this  century  has  its  own  standard  of  fair  workman- 
ship in  printing,  by  which  it  judges  the  old  as  well  as  the 
new.  The  new  too  often  suffers  by  comparison,  but  the  old 
is  not  always  faultless. 

Facsimiles  of  early  books  in  Black-letter  need  not  here  be 
considered,  for  that  form  of  type  is  not  now  used  for  texts. 
The  types  of  the  Bible  of  Forty-two  Lines,  usually  accepted 
as  the  first  book  printed  by  Gutenberg  and  sometimes  oftered 

18 


Roman  preferred  to  any  other  style 
as  a  model  of  stately  form,  are  now  out  of  date  and  seldom 
used  even  in  Germany  as  text-types  for  a  modern  book. 
Fraktur  is  the  name  of  the  style  of  face  now  preferred  in  that 
country  for  the  ordinary  book  or  newspaper,  but  the  book  of 
science  or  scholarship  is  oftener  in  Roman  letter.  An  Ameri- 
can or  English  pubHsher  of  the  present  day  will  occasionally 
decide  to  use  the  form  of  Black-letter  known  as  Old  English 
for  a  prayer-book  or  work  of  a  kindred  ecclesiastical  nature, 
or  for  a  medieval  reprint,  but  he  will  never  select  it  for  the 
text  of  a  popular  book  on  a  modern  subject.  Pointed  Black- 
letter  is,  however,  not  entirely  obsolete,  for  it  is  still  made 
by  the  type-founders  of  Europe  and  America  in  many 
styles,  but  it  finds  its  chief  employment  in  job-printing  for 
occasions  of  ceremony,  where  its  formal  and  dignified  appear- 
ance is  appropriate. 

Black-letter  was  a  preferred  type  not  only  in  Germany  but 
in  Holland,  England,  France,  and  Spain  for  nearly  a  century 
after  the  invention  of  printing.  Oaxton  never  used  Roman 
letter,  which  was  first  introduced  to  England  by  WilHam 
Pinson  in  1518.  Ulric  Gering,  of  Paris,  was  one  of  the 
few  early  printers  of  France  who  provided  acceptable  books 
in  Roman ;  but  many  of  his  books  and  those  of  rival  printers 
in  that  city  were  in  some  form  of  Semigothic  or  Black-letter. 

For  more  than  two  hundred  years  attempts  have  been 
made,  sometimes  to  simplify,  sometimes  to  enlarge  by  dia- 
critical marks  or  other  contrivances  the  usefulness  of  the 
Roman  alphabet,  but  every  novelty  from  the  "real  char- 
acter" of  Bishop  Wilkins  to  the  angular  "visual  alphabet" 
of  a  recent  reformer  has  been  rejected  by  the  book  buyer. 
Our  Roman  alphabet  has  admitted  defects,  but  printing  has 
made  change  difficult  and  almost  impossible.  Equally  offen- 
sive have  been  strivings  to  improve  letters  with  ornament. 

19 


Roman  types  in  Germany  before  1464 

Roman  types,  but  of  a  crude  form,  appeared  in  Germany 
almost  as  early  as  at  Subiaco  and  Rome.  Proctor  specifies 
the  written  date  of  1464  affixed  by  an  illuminator  to  his 
copy  of  a  Durandus  printed  in  Roman  type,  by  the  so-called 
R  printer  of  Strasburg,  whose  twenty- six  books  (all  without 
printed  date)  have  been  the  occasion  of  much  controversy 
among  bibliographers.  By  reason  of  some  mannerisms  of 
form  in  the  types  of  other  printers,  it  has  been  claimed  that 
some  of  the  more  eminent  printers  of  Italy  may  have  been 
associates  or  pupils  of  this  unnamed  R  printer  whose  face  of 
Roman  type  is  here  facsimiled. 

W^^^Icut  narratur  in  Hfloria  trlptita;  Iibro  prim^ 
^^^^V^Conftantinus  facfluscriftianus.'cultum  di' 
V  111^  uinumintantumdilexitQp  tabernaculum  ad 
iftar  ccdeHe  facilum  fecum  deferri  lubebat .  Cui  facer 
dotes  5C  miniftn  ecclefie  afllftebant :  prccibufcj  intcn 
detant.  Komanorfi^  diuerfc  cobortes  cms  exeitipio 
Similiter  fcceirut  .varium  tame  diem  (ecundum  diucr 
fas  opiniones  clegerfit.  Vnde  facerdotes  8<  diaconi  do 
minicam  diem  colucrut.  Alii  vero  fenam  fextam  pre 
tulcrunt .qa dominus m  ca  pafTus  eft  .Vnde  apud  Ro 
tnanosferiafcxtaprius  celcbrabatur.  nec  rationabili 

The  R  Printer.   Strasburg,  1465-70 
From  his  edition  of  the  Sophologium 

14J-point 

That  this  Roman  type  was  not  approved  by  the  ordinary 
German  book  buyer  may  be  inferred  from  the  R  printer's  sub- 
sequent preference  for  Semigothic  type.  HostiHty  to  the 
simple  forms  of  Roman  letter  was  widespread;  the  angular 
lower-case  and  the  fantastic  capital  have  ever  since  retained 
their  preeminence  in  German  print.  There  were,  however, 
several  German  printers  before  the  year  1500  who  occasion- 
ally affixed  Roman  capitals  to  a  Semigothic  lower-case. 

20 


EARLY  ITALIAN  BOOKS 


To  study  the  best  forms  of  early  Roman  letter  the  books 
of  ItaKan  printers  need  the  closest  examination.  Proctor 
records  the  names  of  a  large  number  of  printers  in  different 
cities,  towns,  and  monasteries  of  Italy  before  the  year  1500, 
and  has  identified  about  seventeen  hundred  distinct  faces 
and  bodies  of  Roman  form.  In  the  facsimiles  that  follow 
many  faces  or  styles  appear,  some  from  notable  and  some 
from  petty  printers.  They  show  a  remarkable  zeal  in  typog- 
raphy and  a  general  conformity  to  the  old  Roman  model 
and  to  the  Caroline  minuscule  then  generally  accepted  for 
its  mated  lower-case. 

Roman  characters  are  to  be  found  in  greatest  variety  and 
of  most  pleasing  form  in  books  written  or  printed  in  Italy 
before  the  year  1500.  In  no  other  country  were  clerkly 
crafts  that  contribute  to  the  making  of  books  more  dili- 
gently practised  or  held  in  higher  esteem.  Copyists  of  aU 
grades  from  the  plain  scribe  to  the  expert  calligrapher,  as 
well  as  illuminators,  miniaturists,  designers,  and  decorative 
bookbinders,  there  found  their  highest  appreciation.  Books 
were  made  in  large  quantity,  in  many  sizes,  and  at  various 
prices  to  meet  the  varying  demands  of  poor  and  rich.  The 
cheaper  forms  have  been  destroyed;  those  that  have  most 
celebrity  and  now  survive  are  mainly  on  large  paper  or  on 
fine  vellum. 

Early  books  were  strangely  unlike:  choir  books,  huge  in 
form  and  of  heavy  weight,  written  upon  the  skins  of  large 
sheep  or  calves,  covered  with  large  square-headed  notes  of 
music  to  be  easily  read  at  a  distance;  classical  and  church 

21 


Old  books  that  survive  are  usually  of  merit 

literature  usually  appeared  in  the  form  of  portly  folios  with 
covers  of  oak,  studded  with  bosses  of  brass ;  breviaries  and 
manuals  of  devotion  contained  leaves  of  the  thinnest  vellum 
filled  with  minute  lettering  as  distinct  as  that  of  fine  modern 
print,  bound  in  tooled  leather,  in  velvet,  or  in  silver  covers 
that  had  been  decorated  with  semi-precious  stones.  Most  ad- 
mirable for  thoroughness  of  workmanship  were  the  breviaries 
made  as  gifts  for  personal  use,  for  many  contained  the  designs 
of  eminent  artists  and  were  prodigally  illuminated  on  every 
leaf  with  gold  and  harmonious  color.  A  collection  of  neatly 
written  and  sumptuously  bound  books  was  regarded  during 
this  period  as  one  of  the  more  desirable  possessions  of  the 
man  who  wished  to  be  rated  as  a  collector  of  discernment  or 
as  a  man  of  education  and  good  taste. 

Books  written  on  paper  were  always  abundant,  for  schools 
were  many,  and  Italy  was  then  making  papers  of  excellence 
at  relatively  moderate  price;  but  books  of  paper,  not  made 
for  critical  collectors,  were  for  poor  scholars  and  the  larger 
number  of  general  readers.  Few  of  the  written  and  printed 
books  of  small  size,  cheaply  made  for  the  needs  of  young 
scholars  and  poor  buyers,  are  in  existence  now,  for  they  were 
gradually  thumbed  to  rags  by  persistent  handling,  and  for 
that  shabbiness  have  been  kept  out  of  neat  collections,  but 
enough  have  survived  to  indicate  the  existence  of  the  larger 
number  destroyed.  The  old  books  that  are  now  made  to 
serve  for  comparison  with  new  books  are  of  the  better  class. 

Old  printed  books  of  celebrity  are  usually  on  large  leaves, 
and  have  broad  margins,  supplemented  with  a  few  gaps  of 
white  space  at  chapter  breaks  for  the  futm-e  insertion  of 
hand-painted  initials.  Provision  was  seldom  made  in  Italy 
for  added  borders  in  the  margin.  The  sizes  preferred  ranged 
from  the  large  folio  of  10x16  to  the  small  quarto  about 

22 


Early  printers  avoided  profuse  decoration 

6x8  inclies.  The  development  of  book  printing  had  to 
wait  for  a  fuller  development  of  paper-making  and  press 
building;  sheets  of  paper  in  size  larger  than  16x21  inches 
were  not  common.  No  press  had  then  been  constructed  that 
would  print  at  one  pull  more  than  one  page  of  a  large  foKo. 
Small  sizes  were  tolerated  for  school-books  and  prayer-books, 
but  the  collector  who  intended  to  invest  his  shelves  with 
proper  dignity  preferred  the  large  book. 

Some  decoration  seems  to  have  been  desired  by  publishers. 
The  copyist  who  wrote  only  with  plain  letters  expected  that 
his  handwritten  work  afterward  would  be  generously  orna- 
mented by  a  following  caUigrapher  or  miniaturist,  and  it  was 
largely  for  the  latter' s  needs  as  well  as  for  those  of  the  schol- 
arly annotator  that  he  gave  broad  margins  to  every  page. 

The  first  type-printed  books  were  intended  to  be  copies  of 
the  more  useful  features  only  of  manuscript  books.  Decora- 
tions that  had  been  made  in  the  manuscript  by  artist  and 
illuminator  were  wisely  put  aside  by  the  first  printers  as  be- 
yond imitation.  Not  all  sm*viving  printed  books  have  re- 
ceived the  decorative  initials  that  were  often  desired  by  the 
printer  or  publisher ;  but  even  when  they  come  to  us  without 
decoration  or  unprovided  with  blank  spaces  for  intended 
initials  or  border,  they  are  more  pleasing  than  other  books  of 
a  similar  class  that  have  been  hastily  treated  by  unskilled 
decorators  or  miniaturists,  who  attempted  ornament  beyond 
their  ability.  Unpretending  print  is  never  improved  by 
inappropriate  or  tasteless  ornament. 

The  skill  of  the  expert  Italian  copyist  is  fairly  shown  in  the 
facsimile  that  follows  (plate  1),  of  a  page  fi-om  a  manuscript 
of  one  hundred  and  forty  leaves  on  vellum,  by  an  unknown 
penman  and  illuminator,  of  the  De  Oratore  of  Cicero.  Every 
page  shows  the  same  degree  of  painstaking  care,  and  the 

23 


Beautiful  penmanship  of  Italian  copyists 

more  important  breaks  in  the  discourse  have  graceM  initial 
letters  in  many  colors.  A  closer  examination  of  some  of  the 
old  methods  of  manuscript  book-makers  may  be  of  service. 
Here  one  may  begin  to  trace  the  early  methods  of  forming 
letters  that  were  afterward  copied  by  the  makers  of  types; 
round  letters  and  low,  like  a  and  e,  are  unusually  low  and 
small;  descending  letters,  like  p  and  have  noticeable  pro- 
traction. This  treatment  compelled  the  provision  of  a  wide 
lane  of  white  space  between  lines  that  seems  almost  twice 
the  height  of  the  round  letters.  Ascending  letters,  like  b 
and  d,  are  also  protracted.  The  capital  letters  are  much  like 
the  series  we  now  call  small  capitals;  when  used  as  initials 
for  lines  of  poetry  they  were  separated  by  a  space  and  kept 
at  a  distance  fi'om  the  lower-case  letters  that  follow.  This 
aloofness  of  initial  capital  letters  in  early  Italian  poetry  was 
maintained  by  Aldus  Manutius  and  is  not  yet  entirely  out  of 
fashion  in  Italy.  The  remarkable  legibility  of  the  text  does 
not  entirely  come  from  the  uniformity  of  its  alphabetical 
letters;  it  is  largely  aided  by  the  broad  lane  of  white  space 
between  the  lines  which  gives  a  proper  relief  to  the  eye. 

Hyphens  are  not  used  for  the  division  of  words,  nor  are 
all  lines  spaced  out  to  the  right  to  uniform  length  and  full 
width  of  the  measure.  The  diphthongs  and  oe  do  not 
appear;  but  seme  letters  have  finials  to  indicate  abbrevia- 
tion. The  vowel  e  occasionally  has  an  attached  flourish 
which  may  have  been  added  as  a  grace,  but  not  as  an  accent 
or  for  any  other  known  reason. 

The  compression  and  close  fitting  of  the  lower-case  letters 
is  as  remarkable  as  is  the  reduced  size  of  the  capitals.  The 
general  effect  of  the  page  is  that  of  extreme  lightness  and 
delicacy,  yet  the  hair-lines  of  letters  are  short,  hardly  per- 
ceptible in  the  serifs,  and  mainly  visible  in  finial  decoration. 

2i 


Plate  1 


^cv>ntm  aud  M-ihemnonum  uerfamur ;  A:  id  turn 
gmns  omtorr reUtjuinfr;  no  complecrdr  itjWs  Itibm ' 
a-mpUu6;(]>  (^^huic  gmm'  rei^'tujritum  -  &  mwlmntx 
(liYpixtatxrni  jfummm    krminu  -propc^oScnfu  r  m 
butum'txpetarm^  non  abtnainatults  twriietms  pum 
^ts  cj;  cloctnn^  quendam  ordmem  ptp^torutn  •  fed  d 
cju^  quaTidatn  aoepi  mnrbrum  lx)wtn  elo^umdflfiTnojf 
&  omTH  jtatZ-prinapum  (Itfputatume^er  ucrfata.ncm 
cjd'illa  ctmttmmm  qu^gij^c^'dtcmdi  amfuxs  A  da^te 
Tfs  tritqucmnt.Sed  c^iwnum  itU  pattarvt  impmnptu 
cj;  fint  omnituft  netj;  w  mterpretarion/mei  aur  oma 
tiuf  expUcan,  aut  ^jUtous  exi?nTm  fofltnt  •  babi'g 
loanc  ucnum  mi  fwxf  .  viz  optnor  •  ut  eomm  cjuiinis 
fumma  dicemlt  U«5  A  nofbris  knntmbufi  conceffa^eftr 
aiic^rtcattm  grpcis  amteb  o  m  a  av. 

V  M  iguur  tteliementitif  ittitcderetur'm  ca. 
ufatn  -prmotputn  ccmfuI'Tlnltppus^'Dwftq: 
Tntututu*  -pro  fenatus  axictoncatf^  fufcep 
tuf^wfrvngi  um  (lekiimncp  ttulcretur'm/^ 
nuTO  dia  rruln  tudorum  tomanomm  dic^ 


W$ .  L .  cmflTum  cjuaft  colhgmdi  fm  caula  fc^ mtu/ca 
Unum  amtwliVTc^  vcnitTetj;  eodem  foccmtn  ctu/*  qm 
fittlTr^Q^  Miitius  dtcetatur.  et.M  Antonml^liomo  <3c 
confJiorum  tn  r .  P .  fotuif .  et  fumma  mm  Craflfofa, 
miltantate'ctmiUTictus  /Extcmnc  auttm  cam  t^fo 
Cr4ffo  adolefcmtef  ctlhruft  maxtmcfami&atts  et 
ancjiubuft  magiam  turn  fpcm  maiores  natu-  dxgiita 
tift  fuc  coUocarat  C  Cottara  cjiu  Tnbtmatu  :t  L .  peteW 
6c  t .  sulpttius  (^tu  deinccps  cum  magUbatum  pctim 
ru$  pucaba-tur  Hi  fnmo  dirdettmponbtttilU*  dcif 
mxucrfa .  r  p  tjium  ob  catUam  umcrant  mwitu  tntcr 
fe:'  uft^  ad  eyxmrm  tcmpus  dia  ooUocuti  ftmt  <^uo  tpi^ 

De  Oratore  of  Cicero 

The  manuscript  of  an  unidentified  scribe 


Description  in  note  of  the  Sforziada 

A  more  satisfactory  exhibit  of  the  thoroughness  of  Italian 
skill  in  book-making  arts  is  presented  in  the  facsimile  (plate 
2)  which  shows  the  art  of  an  unknown  illuminator  with  the 
type  work  of  the  printer  Antonio  Zarotto  of  Milan/ 

The  types  of  this  book  are  readable,  but  not  so  graceful  as 
the  letters  in  the  manuscript  Cicero  (plate  1).  When  this 
book  was  published  in  1490  printing  had  been  established 
in  sixty-five  places  in  Italy,  and  in  some  were  two  or  more 
printers.  The  limitations  of  typography  had  already  been 
clearly  discerned.  Decoration  and  color  work  had  been 
abandoned  to  the  miniaturists  and  calligraphers.  Printers 
had  practically  agreed  among  themselves  to  make  books  that 
should  be  useful  more  than  ornamental.  They  followed  as 
closely  as  they  could  the  established  mannerisms  of  the 
copyists;  they  compacted  their  print  with  thin  spacing  and 
few  paragraphs,  discarded  hyphens  for  broken  words,  and 

'The  title  of  the  book  is  La  Historia  Probably  it  was  carried  to  France  when  Louis 
delle  cose  facte  dallo  invictissimo  Duca  xii,  on  his  expulsion  of  Ludovico  from  i\Ii- 
Francesco  Sforza  scripta  in  Latino  da  Ian,  seized  the  Sforza  library  in  the  Castle  of 
Giovanni  Simonetta  et  tradocta  in  lingua  Pavia  in  1499  or  1500.  It  passed  succes- 
Fiorentina  da  Christophoro  Landino  Fioren-  sively  into  many  hands  and  finally  into  the 
tino.  Printed  by  Antonio  Zarotto  Par-  library  of  Thomas  Grenville,  by  whom  it  was 
mesano  in  Milano  nelli  anni  del  Signore  bequeathed  to  the  British  Museum  in  1846. 
MCCCCLXXXX.  The  copy  of  the  Sfor-  The  portrait  on  the  left,  inscribed  FEAN 
ziada  from  which  this  page  was  facsimiled  [ciscus]  SFOE[tia]  VIC[ecomes]  DVX 
is  the  Life  of  Francesco  Sforza-Visconti,  M[edio]L[an]i  IIII,  is  that  of  Duke  Fran- 
fourth  Duke  of  Milan  (1450-1466).  It  cesco,  whose  life  is  the  subject  of  Simo- 
was  translated  into  Italian  by  Cristoforo  netta's  work.  The  portrait  on  the  right  is 
Landino  from  the  Latin  of  Giovanni  Simo-  that  of  l  udovico  il  Moro.  At  the  top  of  the 
netta,  and  published  at  Milan  in  1490  —  one  page  is  the  emblem  of  the  Moor's  head;  at 
of  three  extant  copies  on  vellum.  It  con-  the  bottom  Ludovico's  arms.  The  shield  is 
sists  of  208  leaves  of  the  finest  white  velhim,  supported  by  a  fine  group  of  amorini,  some  of 
14  inches  in  height  by  9f  inches  in  width,  whom  are  engaged  in  the  children's  games  of 
The  volume  is  in  its  original  binding  of  "Hot  Cockles"  and  "Buck!  buck!  how 
wooden  boards  covered  with  crimson  velvet,  many  fingers  do  I  hold  up  ?  " 
with  clasps  and  bosses  of  silver.  The  em-  This  illustration,  strictly  accurate  as  to 
blems  fastened  on  the  cover  show  that  the  form,  is  imperfectly  presented  in  black  ink; 
book  from  which  this  copy  was  taken  origi-  the  original  design  is  enriched  with  many 
nally  belonged  to  Ludovico  il  Moro,  who  at  colors.  From  Illuminated  IManuscripts  of 
the  time  it  was  printed,  although  virtual  ruler  the  British  Museum,  folio,  1899  -  1903.  It 
of  Milan,  had  not  yet  actually  succeeded  his  is  also  shown  in  Kugler,  Handbook  of  Paint- 
nephew  Duke  Gian  Galeazzo  (1476-  1494).  ing,  Italian  Schools,  1887,  ii,  p.  385. 

26 


Plate  2 


iLIBRO  PRIMO  DELLA  HISTORIA  DELLE  COSE  FACTE  DAI  LO 
{IN  VICTISSIMO  DVCA  FRANCESCO  5FORZA  SCRIPTA  IN  LA 
jTINODA  GIOVANNI  SIMONETTA  ET  TRADOCTA  IN  LIN 
iGVA  FIQRENTINA  DACH^^OPHORQ  LANDINQ  FIORFM 

E  TEMPI  CHE  LA  REcfNA  GIOVANNa  SE 
jconda  figliuola  di  Carlo  R  e  regnaua:perche  era  f uc 
ceduranel  regno  Neapolitanoa  Latiflao  Re  fuo  fra 
|tello  cicjuale  parti  di  uita  fanza  figliuoh.-AIphonfo 
jRe  daragonacon  grande  armata  mouendo  di  Cata 
llogna  uenne  m  Siciha  :  Ifola  di  fuo  Impeno.La  cut 
luenutaexcitoglthuominidel  Neapolirano  regno  a 
h R  I i\J R y^Ai u a r u  fauoru&a  diucrfi  configliia:  non  con  ptccoli 
mouimenti  di  cjuci  regnorlmpero  che  Giouana  Regina  per  molri  &uaru 
fuoi  impudichi  anion  era  caduia  m  foma  infamia.Et  defperandofi  che  lei 
femina  potefTi  adempiere  loflicio  del  9.t:8c  adminirtrare  tanto  regno.fece 
a  femarito  lacopodiNerbonaContedi  Marcia:elqualeper  nobilita  di  fan 
guc:&  belleza  di  corpo:ne meno per  uirru  era  tra  Principi  di  Francia  excel 
Icntc  .  Ma  accorgendori  in  breue  che  quelle  dcfideraua  pm  efTerc  Re :  che 
marito:8ifc|uella  non  molro  ftimaua:mono  da  fern  mile  (euita  lo  rifiuto:<J^ 
priuodogniadmmiflratice.Quertofucagionechel  fuoregno.-elqualeper 
fua  natura  e  prono  alle  difTenfioni  Bi  difcordicrarrogendouifi  e  no  honcili 
coftumi  della  Rcgina;  riiorno  nelleantiche  facflioni  8<:partialita:8(:comm 
f io  ogni  giorno  piu a  flu<fluare 8c  uacillare.Eranoalcuni  aquali  no  difpia 
ccua  la  fignoria  della  d6na:perche benche  il  nome  fufTi  m  lei:loro  nientedi 
menocomidauono.AJiri  defiderauano  cheLodouicotertio  Ducadangio: 
figliuolodi  Lodouico  elqualeera  nomato  Redi  Puglia:& di  uiolante:nara 
dellaRealeftirpedaragonia:tufliadoptatodaIla  Regina.Coftui  pocoauati 
peconforti  diMarrinoterrio  fomo  Ponteficei&di  bfor?a  Atrendolo  excel 
lentifTimoDuca  in  mihtaredirciplina  :  &  padre diFrancefcoffor^adecui 
egregii  facfti  habbiamoa  fcnuere era  uenuto  ahtidiCampagna  Etcogiun 
toA  Sforza:haueatnofroguerra  alla  Regina  .  Maquegli  che  repugnauano 
aLodouicho:mettcuanoogni  indufiria  :  che  Aiphonfo  fufli  adoprarain  A 
gliuolo  della  Reina.  acciochein  NapolifufTi  tal  Rexhecon  lefue  for2e& 
di  marc&  di  rerra  potefTi  refiftcre  alia  poHa  de  Francrofi  .  Adunque  in  coG 
uehemeteContentionedebaroni;&:piu  huommi  del  regno. Alphonfo  chia 
mato  dallaReina  in  hcrede&compagnodel  regnoidiuenenofblo  illufVre 
nia  anchora  horribtle:  Ecel  nomeCalelano  elquale  infino  a  quegli  tempi 
nocramolco  noro&celebre  fenon  apopoli  maritimi:ma  inui/o &:odiofo: 
corruncio  a  crefccre:  &  farfi  chiaro .  Ma  da  Lodouico  8/ 6a  Sforza  tanto 
ogni  giorno  piu  erono  opprefTitel  Re  &  la  Regrnaichediffidadori  nellepro 
pric  forrerconduxono  Braccio  Perugmo  :  el  quale  era  cl  fccon  do  Capita  no 
di  miluia  in  Italia  in  quegli  tepi  c6  mohc  honorcuoii  cdditionK&maxime 


Type  work  by  Antonio  Zarotto.    Milan,  14ii0 
TtLe  Sforziada 

niuminated  border  and  decoration  "by  an  unknown  miniaturist 


General  adherence  to  established  forms  of  letter 

restricted  punctuation  to  the  period  and  colon.  Foreseeing 
the  frailty  of  fine  types  under  strong  impression,  the  grace- 
ful shapes  of  condensed  letters  and  hair-line  strokes  seem  to 
have  been  purposely  avoided.  The  types  of  Zarotto  (slightly 
reduced  in  the  facsimile),  of  wider  form,  are  classified  as 
Roman  letter,  but  serifs  and  hair-lines  are  wanting  at  the 
end  of  thick  strokes,  and  this  defect  gives  to  the  print  the 
utilitarian  appearance  of  the  style  now  known  in  England  as 
Grotesque  or  Sans-serif,  and  in  America  as  Gothic  or  Runic. 
To  the  luxurious  reader  of  the  fifteenth  century  the  charm 
of  this  book  and  of  others  in  similar  style  was  in  the  artistic 
work  that  had  been  lavished  on  illumination  and  binding. 
Its  print  was  not  highly  esteemed,  nor  would  this  esteem 
have  been  merited,  for  the  cut  of  the  type,  the  composition 
of  words,  and  the  presswork  of  the  book  were  even  then  not 
above  the  average  typography  of  its  time.  Artistic  design 
and  crude  mechanical  workmanship  are  here  presented  on 
the  same  page  in  strong  contrast. 

Printers  had  already  wisely  decided  that  they  could  not 
produce  illuminated  books  of  high  merit,  and  that  they  must 
be  content  to  print  those  that  would  be  useful  and  readable. 
Letters  of  the  text,  not  regarded  as  fit  subjects  for  decora- 
tion, were  consequently  drawn  in  simple  style  for  use  more 
than  for  show.  Some  of  the  early  printers,  as  will  be  seen 
on  advanced  pages,  were  needlessly  careless  in  designing  the 
shapes  of  their  types  for  capitals  and  lower-case,  but  they 
did  not  deviate  seriously  from  the  form  ah-eady  established. 
Tracings  of  the  old  Roman  model  and  of  its  many  subsequent 
changes  are  a  needed  introduction  to  a  critical  examination 
of  early  Italian  types. 


28 


THE  OLDER  ROMAN  ALPHABETS 


Surviving  remains  of  the  written  or  sculptm*ed  letters  of 
old  Rome  show  but  twenty- three  alphabetical  characters. 
They  are  always  vertical  and  usually  of  uniform  height, 
fairly  lining  at  head  and  foot,  seldom  varied  with  the  personal 
notions  of  the  lettei-er  who  tried  to  improve  them  by  artistic 
freedom  or  eccentricity.  The  F  and  L  in  the  first  Hne  of 
illustrations  of  Latin  uncials  and  minuscules  are  too  high  in 
line  at  the  head,  but  this  irregularity  was  uncommon.  As 
usually  written  or  cut,  Roman  capitals  in  a  mass  appear 
squared  and  regular  in  combination  as  a  legion  of  Roman 
soldiers  under  drill.  The  captious  critic  may  object  to  some 
forms  as  not  correlated  in  true  proportion ;  but  in  their  dis- 
tinctiveness, simplicity  of  construction,  ease  in  combination 
and  general  effectiveness,  Roman  types  may  be  confidently 
presented  as  superior  to  the  alphabetical  characters  of  any 
other  language. 

The  rigid  formality  of  old  Roman  letters  had  one  demerit  : 
the  capitals  as  then  made  could  not  be  written  quickly,  for 
each  character  had  to  be  formed  by  repeated  strokes.  Scribes 
who  wrote  in  haste  made  use  of  a  form  of  shorthand  that  is 
now  lost.  Writers  not  expert  in  shorthand  tried  to  make 
each  letter  with  fewer  movements  of  the  pen,  and  in  this  way 
produced  the  writing  known  as  Rustic.  To  many  copyists 
the  Rustic  style  of  letter  also  proved  troublesome ;  copying 
was  made  easier  by  constructing  letters  of  fewer  lines  and 
more  rounded  forms,  a  treatment  that  produced  the  styles 
known  as  Uncial  and  Cursive.  Penmen  who  could  not  neatly 
make  curved  lines  revived  the  older  method  of  repeated 

29 


Dr.  Taylor  about  the  Caroline  minuscule 

strokes  for  each  character,  and  in  so  doing  produced  the 
angular  style  now  known  as  Gothic  or  Black-letter.  The 
square- set  Roman  capital,  retained  chiefly  as  an  initial, 
gradually  went  out  of  use  as  a  text  letter  in  medieval  manu- 
scripts and  the  Caroline  minuscule  form  of  character,  more 
readily  formed  hy  the  penman,  took  its  place. 

Why,  then,  give  the  name  of  Roman  to  the  text- types 
of  this  page  and  to  the  types  of  ordinary  books  and  news- 
papers printed  in  England,  America,  and  Latin  Europe? 
The  searcher  will  look  in  vain  for  modern  shapes  of  letters 
in  earlier  Roman  manuscripts  or  in  old  letterings  on  stone. 
If  Cicero  were  revived  he  could  not  read  with  facility,  per- 
haps not  read  at  all,  a  printed  edition  of  his  works,  for  in  his 
time  inscriptions  of  importance  and  texts  of  neatly  made 
manuscript  rolls  or  tablets  were  in  capital  letters  only.  He 
would  decipher  without  any  trouble  the  capital  letters  of  a 
modern  title-page  or  at  the  beginning  of  sentences,  or  some 
of  the  smaller  shapes  of  lower-case,  but  the  combination  in 
that  lower-case  of  known  with  unknown  shapes  of  letters 
would  be  a  bewilderment. 

The  development  of  our  present  Roman  lower-case  letter 
is  explained  by  Dr.  Isaac  Taylor,^  who  says  that  the  origin 
of  our  lower-case  character  is  traceable  to  Alcuin  of  York, 
England,  who  had  been  invited  by  Charlemagne  to  preside 
over  the  Abbey  of  St.  Martin,  at  Tours,  France,  and  did 
so  preside  between  the  years  776  and  809. 

"  Alcuin' s  literary  eminence,  his  Northumbrian  training, 
his  residence  in  Italy,  and  his  position  at  the  court  of 
Charlemagne,  had  made  him  acquainted  with  the  best 
calligraphic  schools  of  Europe,  and  gave  him  the  influence 

'The  Alphabet,  2  vols.,  8vo,  Loudon,  1883,  vol.  ii,  p.  180. 

30 


Latin  uncials  and  minuscules 


AB 

CDE 

F 

GH 

I 

L  MNO 

r 

aRS  TVX 

C  D  I 

r 

6  if 

i 

La\n  0 

t 

ai^  -S  I  VX 

K  B 

c  J>  e 

ch 

1 

I  mN  0 

r 

q  K  s  t  u  X 

1 

c  b  e 

1 

F 

9b 

T 

I  CON  O 

P 

q     s  T  ixyi 

ah 

c  J  e 

f 

I 

I  m  Ji  0 

? 

q  r-  f  TUX 

1 

CL  b 

c  d  e 

r 

I 

L  m  N  o 

P 

^  rr  x:  ujQ 

cc  6 

cdoe 

1 

i  muno 

p 

qpRrsr  u 

K  b 

c  d  e 

f 

t  m  n  0 

c\  r  \  T  u  J. 

-    a  \ 

c  e 

f 

g  1)  11  I  m  ti  0 

p 

q  tzf s  t  u  X 

This  table  lias  been  compiled  to  illustrate  the  stages  in  tbe  evolution  of  Latin  minuscule. 
The  alphabets  are  from  the  facsimiles  of  cardinal  MSS.  published 
by  the  Palseographical  Society 


I  Square  Capitals.   Sec.  iv.    St.  Gall 
Virgil.— Pa/.  Soc,  pi.  208. 

II  Rustic  Capitals.  Sec.  iii.  Vatican 
Virgil,  "Codex  Romanus." 

Pal.  Soc,  pi.  113. 

III  Early  Roman  Uncial.  Sec.  iii.  Vati- 
can palimpsest  Cicero. 

Pal.  Soc,  pi.  160. 

IV  Late  Roman  Uncial.  Sec.  vii.  "St. 
Augustine's  Gospels,"  at  Corpus  Ch. 
Coll.— Pa/.  Soc,  pi.  33. 

From  Tlie  Alpliabet,  an  Account  of  tlie  Origin  and  Development  of  Letters, 
by  Isaac  Taylor,  M.A.,  LL.D.,  8vo,  London,  1883,  vol.  ii,  p.  165. 

31 


V  Gallican  Cursive.     Sec.  vi.  Paris 
Avitus  papyrus. — Pal.  Soc,  pi.  68. 

VI  Early  Gallican  Uncial.  Sec.  v.  Hilary 
Codex  at  Rome. — Pal.  Soc.,]^\.  136. 

VII  Irish  Uncial.    Sec.  vii.    "Book  of 
Kells"  at  Dublin.— Pa/.  Soc,  pi.  56. 

VIII  Caroline  Minuscule.    Sec.  ix.  Bou- 
logne Augustine.— Pa/.  Soc,  pi.  45. 

IX  Early  Black-letter.    Sec.  xiii.  Abbot 
Robert's  Bible  in  British  Museum. 

Pal.  Soc,  pi.  73. 


White-letter  is  resisted  hy  Black-letter 

for  securing  the  adoption  of  his  reforms.  .  .  .  Owing  to  its 
manifold  excellencies,  such  as  the  rapidity  with  which  it 
could  be  written,  the  ease  with  which  it  could  be  read, 
and  economy  of  parchment,  the  Caroline  minuscule,  as  it 
is  usually  called,  grew  rapidly  in  favor,  and  being  diffused 
by  Alcuin's  pupils  over  Europe  displaced  the  older  majus- 
cule scripts — the  monastic  Uncials  as  well  as  the  secular 
Cursives." 

The  Caroline  minuscules,  the  models  for  modern  Roman 
lower-case,  were  gradually  accepted  as  an  improved  form  by 
the  copyists  of  southern  Europe.  As  a  new  style  of  writing 
it  was  then  known  as  the  White-letter,  to  differentiate  it 
from  the  Black-letter  which  had  been  used  for  some  centu- 
ries as  the  proper  letter  for  books  of  devotion.  The  schol- 
ars of  Italy  who  aided  in  the  revival  of  classic  literature 
during  the  period  now  known  as  the  Renaissance,  preferred 
the  White-letter,  but  they  incurred  some  ecclesiastical  hos- 
tility as  practical  revivers  of  classic  paganism.  The  devout 
of  all  countries,  and  especially  of  Germany,  looked  askant 
on  books  in  White-letter  as  possibly  insidious  conveyors  of 
teachings  that  savored  of  infidelity.  Prejudice  against  the 
newer  style  was  strongest  with  the  imperfectly  educated, 
whose  too  scant  familiarity  with  letters  had  been  acquired 
through  the  reading  of  books  of  devotion  appropriately  writ- 
ten in  Black-letter  characters  that  added  a  proper  degree  of 
solemnity  and  gloominess  to  the  page. 

Roman  capitals  were  occasionally  used  with  Black-letter 
minuscules  by  German  copyists,  as  alternates  to  the  more 
irregular  initial  letters  of  Gothic  form,  but  the  simple  forms 
were  not  entirely  pleasing  to  the  German  reader.  The 
texts  of  the  Latin  authors,  printed  entirely  in  Roman  letter, 

32 


Printing  brought  to  Italy  by  Germans 

had  proved  the  unsuccessful  venture  of  a  German  pubhsher 
before  the  sixteenth  century.  Black-letter  forms  were  pre- 
ferred for  ordinary  books  in  every  part  of  northern  Europe 
for  nearly  a  century  after  the  invention  of  printing. 

Early  printing  types  of  Roman  form  are  to  be  found  in 
greatest  variety  and  of  most  merit  in  the  books  of  the  first 
Italian  printers ;  but  their  early  practice  of  typography  was 
not  the  spontaneous  outgrowth  of  Italian^  art  and  skill. 
Printing  was  there  introduced  by  Germans,  who  are  sup- 
posed to  have  abandoned  Mainz  after  its  sacking  by  the 
Swedes  in  1462,  and  its  printers  had  been  dispersed  in 
different  directions.  Many  went  to  Italy.  Numeister,  a 
workman  of  Gutenberg,  whose  name  appears  in  his  suit  at 
law  with  Fust,  was  a  master  printer  at  Foligno  in  1470. 
John  Peter  of  Mainz  was  a  type-maker  at  Florence  in  1472. 
The  German  names  of  Schott  and  Schoeffer  of  Mainz  appear 
in  some  Italian  lists  of  printers. 

Mainz  did  not  furnish  all  the  teachers  of  typography  to 
Italy.  Gutenberg  had  practised  printing  at  Strasburg  be- 
fore he  went  to  Mainz.  Mentel  and  Eggestein  of  Strasburg 
were  prosperous  printers  at  some  early  unfixed  date.  So 
was  the  R  printer  now  supposed  to  have  been  an  important 
typographer  in  Strasbm'g.  Madden  suggests  that  it  may 
have  been  from  these  and  other  printing  houses  that  Jenson 
and  other  printers  who  introduced  printing  in  Italy  received 
instruction  in  typography. 

^  There  is  a  tradition  that  Pamfilo  Cas-  they  were  associated.    The  union  of  German 

taldi  of  Feltre,  Italy,  received  the  suggestion  skill  and  experience  in  typography  with 

of  printing  from  an  early  inspection  of  a  Italian  refinements  and  taste  in  paper-mak- 

book  made  by  Fust,  but  there  is  now  no  ing,  wood-engraving,  and  bookbinding  was 

relic  of  Castaldi's  experimental  work  and  of  mutual  benefit  in  the  production  of  the 

the  story  is  generally  discredited.      The  best  books.    For  about  fifty  years  the  typog- 

Italian  names  in  the  lists  of  early  printers  raphy  of  Italy  was  esteemed  as  of  more 

of  Venice  are  rated  as  the  partners  of  or  beauty  and  accuracy  than  printing  from  any 

helpers  to  the  German  workmen  with  whom  other  part  of  Europe. 

33 


Printing  types  rapidly  made  in  Italy 

Grerman  printers  went  to  Italy  in  the  belief  that  there 
they  would  find  financial  helpers  and  a  ready  sale  for  their 
workmanship.  It  was  supposed  by  them  and  the  public 
that  the  profit  to  be  had  from  typography  must  be  large; 
but  this  assumption  was  coupled  with  small  experience  and 
much  real  ignorance  concerning  the  delays  and  expenses  of 
the  business. 

Apparently  the  printers  had  little  difficulty  in  finding 
Italian  capitalists  who  would  advance  the  money  needed. 
It  was  generally  believed  that  the  cost  of  a  printed  book 
would  be  much  less  than  that  of  the  cheapest  manuscript 
copy,  and  that  the  print  would  be  sure  of  meeting  a  pur- 
chaser if  it  were  offered  at  a  paying  but  reduced  price. 

Preliminary  preparations  were  not  adequately  considered. 
Types  had  to  be  designed  and  cut  and  the  cases  planned  to 
make  types  accessible;  presses  must  be  constructed  and 
many  minor  appurtenances  provided  for  the  despatch  of 
work.  As  a  rule  each  printer  had  to  attend  personally  to 
planning  and  to  most  of  the  construction.  The  first  step 
was  type -making,  and  that  began  in  every  direction  with 
enthusiasm.  Before  the  year  1500  printing  had  been  es- 
tablished in  more  than  seventy-three  Italian  towns  or  cities. 
Proctor  has  identified  sixteen  hundred  and  eighty  distinct 
faces  —  Roman,  Gothic,  Semiroman,  and  Semigothic— pro- 
duced during  this  brief  period.  This  number  does  not 
include  types  from  unknown  printers  and  unidentified  places. 
There  are  also  evidences  of  the  sale  or  transfer  of  types  or 
matrices  from  one  printer  to  another,  but  as  a  rule  these 
distinct  faces  of  type  represent  the  workmanship  of  the 
printer  who  prepared  them  for  his  own  books. 

With  the  Roman  model  and  the  OaroHne  minuscule  that 
had  been  selected  as  its  alternate,  there  was  a  general 

34 


Om  disadvantage  of  Roman  type 

conformity  to  a  recognized  and  established  standard  of  form. 
Then,  as  now,  type-founders  made  their  new  type  faces  thin 
or  broad,  small  or  large,  but  they  made  few  experiments  in 
eccentricity.  Types  were  readable,  wherever  made.  The 
arts  of  designing,  sculpture,  and  painting  were  then  highly 
developed,  but  it  is  not  known  that  any  artist  attempted 
any  important  reconstruction  of  the  alphabet. 

Printers  of  Germany  who  carried  the  practice  of  their 
art  to  Italy  during  the  latter  part  of  the  fifteenth  century 
took  with  them  an  inherited  preference  for  Black-letter,  but 
soon  discovered  that  texts  in  Roman  lower-case  were  more 
acceptable  to  Italian  buyers  of  fine  or  sumptuous  books. 
Conforming  to  this  taste,  they  modeled  the  types  about  to 
be  made  upon  the  lettering  of  approved  Italian  manuscripts. 
The  writing  of  manuscripts  in  a  Roman  character  taken  for 
copy  was  usually  of  large  size  and  of  thin  structural  lines, 
but  of  broad  shape,  round,  clear,  legible,  with  open  spaces 
between  the  stems  of  each  letter  and  often  with  a  wide 
space  between  the  lines  of  reading  matter.  Lightness  and 
openness  gave  attractiveness  to  the  page,  but  this  pleas- 
ing feature  in  a  manuscript  proved  a  disadvantage  to  the 
printer.  Openness  in  print  was  wasteful  of  paper.  A  text 
in  Roman  lower-case  often  occupied  in  type  about  twice  as 
much  space  as  it  would  have  occupied  in  the  customary 
Black-letter.  Large  type  permitted  fewer  lines  to  the  page 
and  compelled  the  selection  of  larger  leaves  and  often  the 
making  of  books  that  must  be  thicker  or  in  two  volumes. 
To  reproduce  desired  lettering  in  type  of  full  size  and  fair 
form,  the  letters  often  had  to  be  cut  for  casting  in  type  on 
the  large  body  of  16 -point.  The  grand  book  printed  from 
large  types  was  unavoidably  of  greater  cost,  and  seemed  to 
warrant  a  grand  price. 

35 


Unseen  disadvantages  in  Roman  type 

There  are  critics  of  printing  who  commend  the  Roman 
types  first  made  in  Italy  as  models  of  good  form,  and  claim 
that  the  inferiority  of  our  modern  print  is  largely  due  to  a 
departure  from  the  early  standards.  This  statement  needs 
the  examination  and  comparison  of  many  styles.  There  is 
no  agreement  among  modern  readers  as  to  the  form  of  type 
for  a  faultless  standard.  Tastes  differ.  Types  of  Jenson 
receive  the  largest  number  of  admirers,  but  they  have  never 
been  strictly  reproduced  by  any  reformer  of  typography. 
Some  of  Jenson' s  mannerisms  are  obsolete,  while  the  less 
valued  types  of  Ratdolt,  Renner,  and  Garamond  have  some 
peculiarities  that  are  still  repeated  by  all  type-founders.  A 
comparison  of  early  types  will  show  that  it  is  not  possible 
to  select  the  product  of  any  printer  as  the  one  that  combines 
all  features  of  merit.  Even  between  the  years  1470  and 
1496  Italian  types  suffered  some  changes.  A  few  came 
fi'om  the  caprices  of  their  designers,  but  more  are  due  to 
changed  conditions  in  other  arts  that  contribute  to  type- 
making  and  to  the  necessity  of  adapting  form  as  well  as 
size  to  meet  the  needs  of  book  buyers.  Types  were  made 
then  as  they  are  now  to  be  adapted  to  paper,  presses,  ink, 
and  the  convenience  of  the  reader.  Different  sizes  and 
faces  have  to  be  provided  now  for  newspaper  advertise- 
ments, catalogues  of  merchandise,  and  general  job -printing, 
as  well  as  for  books  of  reference  that  require  peculiar  signs 
or  symbols,  and  for  pocket  editions  of  the  Bible  and  the 
classics.  Books  so  printed  must  differ  in  size  and  in  cost, 
but  their  types  are  unwisely  classified  wben  dogmatically 
called  good  or  bad.  It  is  not  possible  to  have  all  types  con- 
form to  an  inflexible  standard.  The  type  that  serves  its 
purpose  and  is  easily  readable  should  be  an  acceptable  type. 


36 


TYPES  OF  ROME 


SWEINHEIM  AND  PANNARTZ 

Roman  lower-case  characters  are  supposed  to  have  been 
first  cast  in  types  about  the  year  1464,  at  the  monastery 
of  Subiaco,  near  Rome,  by  two  German  printers,  Conrad 
Sweinheim  and  Arnold  Pannartz,  who  had  been  invited  there 
by  its  ecclesiastics  to  practise  the  art  of  printing.  Their 
first  production  was  three  hundred  copies  of  a  child's  Latin 
grammar  known  as  the  Donatus,  of  which  one  copy  only  is 
now  known.  The  book  in  Roman  type  generally  accepted 
as  second^  in  order  of  time  but  first  in  importance  is  the 
Lactantius  of  1465.  This  new  face  shows  the  unconscious 
leaning  of  its  designer  toward  Black-letter  mannerisms  in  the 
compression,  blackness,  and  modified  angularity  of  its  letters. 
The  punches  or  model  letters  were  engraved  neatly,  and  the 
fitting  up  of  the  matrices  to  the  mold  for  the  even  lining  of 
letters  seems  the  work  of  an  expert,  who  assembled  them 
with  remarkable  closeness.  The  engraver's  work  on  the 
capital  letters  is  not  so  clever ;  to  modern  readers  they  seem 
inharmonious,  uncouth,  and  sprawling.  The  four  lines  of 
careless  writing  at  the  head  of  this  facsimile  and  the  painted 
initial  letter  show  that  even  then  the  printers  received  oc- 
casional help  from  penmen.  A  few  words  of  Greek  in  the 
copy  were  engraved.     The  paper  of  this  book  is  hard  and 

'  The  distinction  of  priority  in  Italian  equipment  for  their  printing  house  not  long 

books,  according  to  Madden,  rightfully  be-  after  the  dispersion  of  printers  from  Mainz 

longs  to  the  De  Oratore  of  Cicero,  which  pos-  in  1462.    There  is  a  possible  priority  for 

sibly  preceded  the  Lactantius  a  few  weeks.  Germany.  The  facsimile  of  the  Sophologium 

See  Lettres  d'un  Bibliographe,  vol.  iv,  p.  480.  on  page  20  shows  that  Eoman  types  were 

Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  probably  began  the  used  in  Strasburg  as  well  as  at  Subiaco. 

37 


The  mannerisms  of  the  Ladantius 

strong  and  not  too  deeply  indented  by  the  impression  of 
types.  There  are  bibliographers  who  praise  the  presswork 
for  the  dense  blackness  of  its  ink,  but  blackness  is  variable 
in  different  copies  of  the  book;  in  some  there  are  lines  and 
pages  too  black  from  types  choked  with  excess  of  ink. 

The  types  of  this  Lactantius  were  cast  on  a  body  a  trifle 
smaller  than  17  points  of  the  American  measurement.^  The 
round  or  low  letters  like  a,  m,  e,  seem  too  low  in  height, 
for  they  are  no  taller  than  similar  letters  now  made  for  a 
bold-faced  Roman  on  12 -point  body.  They  occupied  the 
middle  of  the  17-point  body,  leaving  blank  spaces  at  head 
and  foot  that  produced  in  lines  of  composed  type  the  lanes 
of  white  blank  that  give  proper  relief  to  the  type  and  pro- 
mote legibility.  The  protractions  given  to  ascending  and 
descending  letters  like  b  and  p  are  imitations  of  manuscript 
mannerisms  then  esteemed  graces,  as  has  already  been  shown 
in  the  facsimile  of  the  manuscript  De  Oratore  of  Cicero 
(plate  1),  and  are  even  now  maintained  in  ordinary  current 
penmanship.  These  protracted  letters  on  bodies  of  type 
proved  an  annoyance  to  the  early  printers  when  they  dimin- 
ished the  number  of  lines  to  the  page,  for  they  increased  the 
bulk  and  cost  of  a  proposed  book. 

The  names  of  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  do  not  appear  in 
the  colophons  of  the  Lactantius  or  Cicero,  as  had  been  the 
custom  of  early  copyists.  The  expense  of  producing  these 
books  had  been  borne  by  the  monastery ;  they  were  not  the 
mercantile  ventures  of  the  printers,  and  were  not  regularly 
published  by  them  for  sale  by  the  bookselling  trade. 

'  The  American  point  or  unit  of  measure  Didot  system,  is  a  trifle  larger,  but  it  does 

is  not  based  on  an  unchangeable  standard  ;  not  allow  acceptable  subdivisions  of  sizes  for 

it  is  about  one  seventy-second  of  an  inch.  It  the  regular  type  bodies  in  use  by  American 

is  now  used  by  American  and  English  type-  printers  and  for  that  reason  was  put  aside, 

founders  as  the  most  satisfactory  unit  for  The  German  point    approximates  that  of 

grading  sizes.    The  French  point,  by  the  France. 

38 


Plate  3 


A6H0  «  excellOT  igemo  Wi  quom  fc  doclrmf  pf - 
mtus  dcdidiffent  :<jaiccjmdUbon9  poterac  unpcndi : 
contmms  ommbus  pubUds  «  pruians  aclionibus : 
ad  m<|mredf  ucritaas  ftudm  fc  contulcmc :  odftima  - 
tes  mulfo  effc  prf  darms  bumanaru  dimnaruq]  rcru 
^mudHgare  ac  (Hrc  mtione  |  ftruedis  opibus  auc  cu  - 
mutandis  bononbus  mberere:Quibus  rebus  quoniam  f  ragilestcrrcnc(|;5 
func :  Si  ad  Colias  corporis  panenc  culmm  nemo  melior :  nemo  mftior  cft'ci 
pored.  Erac  cjuidq  iUi  ueritatis  cogmaonedvgmffimi  quam  fcirc  tatopere 
cupmeruc :  accp  ita  ut  cam  rebus  ommbus  an  tcponerec ;  Ham  61  abieciffe 
cjuoTda  res  familiares  fuas  ec  renuoaffc  um'uerfis  uoluptaabus  conftac :  uc 
Tola  nudamcp  lurtuce :  nudi  expedmcj^  fequercnr  :canruapud  eos  m'rmcis 
nomen  ec  auclontas  ualiuc :  ur  m  ea  omne  fummi  bom'  premium  pdicarec . 
Sed  necj5  adepK  f uc  id  quod  uolebac :  &i  opera  fimul  acq^  mdudria  pdidc ^ 
rue :  quia  ucricis  ideft  arcbanu  f  umi  dd  qui  f ecicomnia  mgemb  ac  jppriis 
fcnfibus  no  poceft  compbedi :  alioqxiin  m'bil  mcer  deu  bommeq^  diftarec  ft 
cofilia  Si  dilpoficiones  illius  maieftacis  eceme  cogitatio  affequerer  buma- 
na.  Quod  quia  fieri  no  pomic  uc  bommi  p  fc  ipf  li  ideo  diuma  nofcere :  non 
cfl:  paf  fus  bommemdeus  lume  lapienae  requirenrem  diucius  errare :  ac  fme 
ulto  laboris  efFectu  uagari  per  cenebms  mextricabiles :  aperuic  oculos  eius 
aliquando :  Si  noaonem  ueritatis  munus  fuu  fedc :  uc  si  bumana  (apicnda 
nulla  effe  monllmrec :  Si>  erraaac  uago  uiam  colloquend^  immortaliotis 
oftederec .  Veru  quoma  pauci  utun  t  hoc  celcfU  beneficio  ac  munere :  quod 
obuoluta  m  obfcuro  ueritas  lacer ;  eaq^  uel  concemtui  docHs  efl: :  quia  ido^ 
nds  afTercoribus  eget :  uel  odio  idocKs  ob  mfica  fibi  aufteritace :  qua  naw 
bommum  prodiuis  m  uicia  pad  nonpoceft :  Ham  quia  uirmnbus  amari^ 
hido  pmixta  e :  uitia  uero  uoluptare  condita  func :  ilia  oifenfi  :bac  delmid : 
fcruncur  m  pcepf :  ac  bono}/:  Ipede  falfi  mala  ^  bonis  ampIeclunr.Succur ' 
redu  cf fc  bis  erroribus  credidi  uc  ec  docli  ad  uera  lapiendam  diriganc :  ef 
mdocB  ad  uera  rdigione.Que  prof effio  mulco  melior :  unlior :  gloriofior : 
pucanda  eft  q  ilia  omroria  m  qua  diu  uerfad :  non  ad  uirtuce  fed  plane  ad 
arguta  malida  iuuenes  erudiebamuJu  Multo  qppe  nuc  recttus  de  pcepds 

Sweinheim  and  Pannartz.    Subiaco,  1465 
A  page  of  the  Lactantius  from  tiie  library  of  Bobert  Hoe 

Scant  17-point 


Early  types  not  mechanically  well  made 

For  more  than  four  centuries  type-founders  have  tried  to 
improve  the  appearance  of  the  old  Roman  alphabet.  The 
names  of  Jenson,  Renner,  Ratdolt,  Aldus,  Garamond,  Tory, 
the  Stephens  and  the  Elzevirs,  Van  Dijck,  Didot,  Caslon, 
and  Bodoni  are  those  of  the  masters  that  at  once  present 
themselves,  but  imitations  of  their  faces  are  really  attempted 
alterations  and  improvements.  The  style  of  Van  Dijck, 
approved  dm'ing  the  seventeenth  century,  was  reformed  by 
William  Caslon  in  1731,  but  before  the  year  1800  the 
Oaslon  style  was  obsolete.  In  1844  it  was  revived  by 
Whittingham  and  still  retains  its  old  popularity. 

Few  of  the  leading  types  were  scientifically  constructed. 
Early  type-founders  had  no  tools  of  precision,  and  no  system 
for  the  graduating  of  sizes.  Pressmen  had  to  give  to  types 
unusual  care  to  prevent  their  shallow  counters  from  being 
choked  by  excessive  ink.  Many  printers  seemed  indifferent 
to  their  neat  construction.  Types  were  not  always  even  in 
the  width  of  thick  stroke  nor  in  true  alinement:  the  curved 
line  was  not  always  a  true  curve;  the  flat  line  not  always 
truly  straight;  the  requests  for  delicacy  as  in  the  hair-lines 
of  copperplate  printing  seem  to  have  been  put  aside  as 
finical.    The  first  type-founders  preferred  sturdy  boldness. 

The  only  attempt  known  to  me  as  a  fair  reproduction  of 
the  Lactantius  face  of  type  has  been  made  by  Mr.  0.  H. 
St.  J.  Hornby  of  the  Ashendene  Press,  who  had  the  discern- 
ment to  see  in  this  type  quaint  and  pleasing  characteristics 
that  had  been  somewhat  obscm-ed  by  its  generally  over- 
colored  presswork.  With  this  face  of  letter,  recut  by 
Mr.  Emery  Walker  of  London,  Mr.  Hornby  has  produced 
several  reprints  of  value,  among  them  the  Divine  Comedy 
of  Dante.  No  other  type-founder  or  printer  has  faithfully 
copied  this  face  or  repeated  its  striking  peculiarities. 

40 


Plate  4 

Quell*  amma  Ussh  cbe  ba  maggior  pcna, 
Disse  il  Maestro,  i  Giucla  Scariotto, 
Che  il  capo  ba  dentro,  e  fiior  le  gambe  mena, 

Degli  altiH  due  cb'  banno  il  capo  di  sotto, 
Quei  cbe  pende  dal  nero  ceFFo  t  Bruto : 
Vedi  come  si  storce,  ai  non  fa  motto : 

E  Paltro  t  Qssio,  cbe  par  s\  membruto. 
AAa  la  notte  risurge ;  ed  oramai 
E  da  partir,  cbe  tutto  avem  veduto. 

Com'  a  lui  piacque,  il  collo  gli  awingbiai ; 
Ed  ei  prese  di  tempo  acloto  poste: 
E  quando  l^ali  (uro  aperte  assai, 

Appigli6  s^  alle  vellutc  coste : 
Di  vello  in  vello  giii  discese  poscia 
Tra  il  folto  pelo  e  le  geUte  croste. 

Quando  noi  (ummo  la  dove  la  coscia 

Si  volge  appunto  in  sul  grosso  dell'  ancbe, 
Lo  Duca  con  Fatica  e  con  angoscia 

Volse  la  testa  ov'  egli  avea  le  zancbe, 
Ed  aggmppossi  al  pel  come  uom  cbe  sale, 
St  cbe  in  inferno  io  credea  tomar  ancbe. 


A  reproduction  of  the  types  of  the  Lactantius,  from 
Mr.  C.  H.  St.  John  Hornby's  reprint  of  the  Inferno  of  Dante 

17-point 


Inferiority  of  Sweinhdm  and  Pannartz^s  second  Roman  type 

The  book  next  printed  by  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  is  St. 
Augustine's  City  of  God  (lib.  xxii),  which  appeared  in  1467. 
In  its  colophon  neither  the  name  of  the  monastery  nor  that 
of  the  printers  appears.  Whether  the  book  was  partly 
made  at  Subiaco  and  completed  at  Rome  is  an  open  ques- 
tion; but  the  type  of  the  Lactantius  soon  went  out  of  use. 
It  had  not  been  fully  approved. 

While  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  were  at  work  at  Subiaco 
in  1467,  Ulric  Hahn,  a  formidable  rival,  was  establishing 
himself  as  a  printer  at  Rome.  Three  years  of  practice  at 
a  lonely  monastery  in  the  mountains,  more  than  a  day's 
journey  from  Rome,  had  proved  that  Subiaco  was  not  a  desir- 
able place  for  making  and  selling  large  books  in  quantity. 
Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  had  other  reasons  for  change. 
Ecclesiastical  dignitaries  of  Rome  had  urged  them  to  begin 
a  more  profitable  practice  of  their  art  in  the  great  city  then 
full  of  books  and  with  many  ostensible  patrons  of  education. 

The  threatened  competition  of  Ulric  Hahn  and  their  be- 
lated perception  of  the  Italian  dislike  of  Gothic  somberness 
induced  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  to  make  their  next  types 
more  Roman  in  form,  but  the  second  types  were  not  so 
symmetrical  as  the  first.  The  new  face  showed  grave  im- 
perfections of  proportion;  its  imperfect  lining  of  letters 
indicated  that  the  cutting  and  casting  of  types  had  been 
done  hurriedly  and  possibly  by  inexperts.  Their  new  types 
were  of  lighter  face,  round  and  slightly  compressed,  without 
the  diphthongs  and  oe,  but  not  entirely  free  from  Gothic 
features.  The  characters  were  not  drawn  in  true  propor- 
tion and  the  matrices  were  not  neatly  fitted  to  the  mold. 
The  short  final  s  was  not  engraved,  the  old  form  of  long  f 
appearing  at  the  end  as  well  as  at  the  beginning  of  a  word. 
The  i  is  not  dotted;  the  lower-case  a  is  squat  and  of  an 

42 


Plate  5 


QVid  tdcefdnimd'  Qutd  cogiwaonibuf  eftua(?  Quid  non  erumpifm  uocem:cc 
mennf  tuc  exponif  ardorem :  ut  aliquod  ro[dnum  capiaf.^  Hoc  plane  hoc  eric 
quafi  remcdmm  quoddam  egricudmiftue.Ti  apcrco  ore  concepcu  digeraffcelur.  Nam 
ec  ulcufcumfucric  tumidum.-guiffuppuramm  cuapordnfprenrac  refrigeriu  palTionu 
A-udicc  nunc  qui  propeefbif;  ecquilonge:  qui  amenrdeum:  ec  Ecclefie  eiufgaudio 
congaudcnOec  crifttae  conlugccif:  (icuc  fcripcum  efb.  Gaud  ere  cum  gaudenbunflerc 
cum  flencibuf.  Vofinqm  appcllo:  qui  caricacem  XpriOri  uerillimam  rennecif.ecnon 
fuper  miquicacegaudeaf.  fed  pociurmgemifaaf.  Aducrctce  poaufuerba  orifmei:  ec 
an  iniuOro  ex  dolore  procedanctudicace:ec  decccfli  rcelerifqualicarem  mecum  pancer 
perborrecc. <pVirgo  nobiliOec  dicacaXprirtro :  (apienf:  erudica :  ruic  m  f oueam  cur/ 
pitudinif.  concepicdolorem:  ec  pepericiniquicacem.  Hic  omnif  anima  Xprifhana 
grauc  uulnufaccepic.  quia  datum  efb  canibuffancftum.-ec  margarice  mifle  Tunc  ante 
porcof.  A.  fairifcmm  bominibuflaceracum  cH:  nomen  fandritacir.  ec  ab  immundiOeC 
luceiOpropoficum  cafticatif.  Hic  enufanime  mee ;  bic  mfanabilifen:  dolor :  quia  unu 
malum  bona  plurima  fecum  crabic*  ec  uniufnubecula  peccacriaf:  cocam  lucem  pene 
obfcurauic Ecclefie.  A.udice  meomnef  populi.  ec  uidecedolorem  meum.  Virgmef 
mee  ••  ec  luuenef  mei  abierunc  m  captiuiracem.  Vere  bee  eft  captiuitaf:  ubi  anime  pec/ 
catorum  capciueducuncur.A.flumam  ergo  fermonem  propbecicum.ee flebilicer  dic^. 
ad  te  nunc  mibi  meuffermo  fic:  que  capuc  bo2f  ec  cauQi  malo2f  ef-que  mulciplicicer 
mifera:  cum  gloria  uirginicacif nomen  etiam  perdidifti.  Nepbafenim  efb  Sufannam 
uocari  non  cafbam .  Non  licec  nommari  :quod  non  efb.  Vnde  mapiam  ^ quid  pmu: 
quid  ulumu  dicam.'Bona  c6memorcm:que  perdidifbii' an  mala  deflea.que  muemfbi^ 
Erafuirgo  m  paradyfo  dei:utiqj  inter  Ecclefiaferaffponfa  Xpnfb .  Eraf  templum 
dommt .  eraf  babicaculum  fpintuf  fan(fli .  ec  cum  dico  cocienf  craf:  neceHe  efb :  uc  conef 
mgemifcaOqa  non  eOquod  fuifbi .  Incedcbaf  m  Ecclefiam  rang  columba  illa:  de  qua 
fcriptu  € .  Penne  colube  deargetace:  ec  pofberiora  dorfi  eiufm  fpecie  dun-  Spledebaf 
uc  argentum.  Fulgebaf:  ucaurum .  fmceram  confcientram  proferebaf-  Erafcaq  fhella 
m  manu  domini.nullu  uentu:nullafnebulafpnmefcef  Que  efb  ifba  fubica  c6uerfio' 
Que  efbifba  rcpentma  mutatio  .'De  dei  uirgine  facfba  efcorruprio  fatbdne.  Dc  fpofa 
Xprifbi:Fdda  cffcorcum  exccrabile.dc  cemplo  domini  fanum  immundicie.de  babi/ 
taculo  fpincufiancfli.'tugunum  diaboli.Que  incedcbaf  cum  fiducia  ut  columba:  nuc 
latef m  cenebrofif;  uc  Orellio .  Que'fulgebaf: uc aurum :  propcer  uirgmitatif decorem : 
nunc  uilior  facfla  cf:  canq  lucum  placearum:uc  etiam  tndignoru  pedibuf  coculcerif. 
que  Fueraf  fbellaradianfm  manu  domini.uelun  dc  alco  ruenfcelo  conuerfa  efm  car/ 
bonem  nigrum .  Vcb  tibt  mifcrasec  iceru  ueb .  que  caca  bona ;  parua  ceporif  luxunaJ 
perdidifbi. Quam  abi  Ipem  apud  Xprifbum dommum  reliquifbi :  cuiuf membra  toUef 
fecifbt  membra  merccriaf^Quif  ce  fpirituf fancfluf uidrabic*  cum  eum  rcpudiaueriOqui 
fe  a  cogitattoibufquoq?  fordidif  loge  Facie'  Sed  ueniamuf  ad  bumana.  uc  illa  diuma 
cognoicantur.  A^fpicc  qui  fanc^borum.-quc  (an(f>arum:tibi  appro  ximdre  no  borret' 
Aperi  oculoOfi  potcf.Erige  Fronccm:fiaudef.  Mique  fand:o2f  fiducialiter  mtuere. 
Nonne  wam  Faciem  confcientie  commiHa:  canq  plumbum  mclmanc:  ec  premunc' 
Nonnc  tenebre  ance  oculofcuof:uc  dura  caligo  uerfanmr 'Nonne  cimor  ec  crcmor 
animSi  tua:  ec  membra  tua  quafTabic'  Si  ergo  bommefm  carne  confbitutoO  ec  illof: 
qui  pro  tua  opmione  laboranc  ucrerif:  multum  audax  mulcumq;  cemeraria  ef  fi  ce 
confciencia  no  tcrrec:uc  fimulaca  uirginicacc  pucarcf  ce  ena  dommum  poHTc  Fallere: 
qui  dixic .  Nil  occulcum :  quod  non  reueletur .  Ec  uof  mquic  Fecifbif  m  occulco .  Ego 

Sweinheim  and  Pannartz.   Rome,  1470 
Hieronymi  Epistolae 


16-point 


Books  published  by  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz 

unpleasing  form;  the  capital  letters  have  unusual  width  and 
are  scraggy  in  combination.  Some  vowels  carry  accents, 
but  there  are  not  many  abbreviations  or  logotypes.  This 
renewed  face  did  not  meet  with  general  approval.  The 
Hieronymi  Epistolse  for  which  this  type  was  designed  was 
published  in  two  bulky  volumes  of  more  than  six  hundred 
pages,  46  lines  to  the  page,  and  each  page  of  type  is  6^ 
inches  wide  and  10^  inches  tall.  Foreseeing  the  bulk  of 
the  new  work,  the  printers  had  the  new  face  cast  upon  the 
smaller  body  of  16  points. 

At  Rome,  favored  by  the  approval  of  the  Pope,  Sixtus  IV, 
who  frequently  visited  their  printing  house,  as  well  as  by 
volunteered  offers  of  assistance  from  his  librarian  and  other 
learned  ecclesiastics,  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  began  the 
practice  of  book  printing  with  lively  enthusiasm,  but  it 
yielded  to  them  more  honor  than  profit.  On  the  20th  of 
March,  1472,  the  Bishop  of  Aleria,  their  editor  and  corrector 
of  the  press,  writing  then  in  the  names  of  Sweinheim  and 
Pannartz,  begged  for  them  some  financial  assistance  from 
the  Pope.  He  said  that  the  printers  were  in  dire  poverty 
through  the  great  cost  and  slow  sale  of  their  work.  Many 
books  remained  unsold;  in  seven  years  they  had  printed 
more  than  fifty  works,  of  which  some  were  very  large, 
amounting  to  11,475  volumes. 

The  books  selected  for  publication  as  specified  in  this 
petition  were  mostly  in  folio  form,  printed  at  high  cost,  to 
suit  the  taste  of  critical  book  buyers;  their  subject-matter 
did  not  invite  the  ordinary  book  buyer.  The  writings  of 
classic  authors  had  preference ;  the  names  of  Virgil,  Cicero, 
Osesar,  Strabo,  Ovid,  Pliny,  Quintilian,  Aulus  Gellius,  and 
Suetonius  appear  in  the  list  presented  to  the  Pope.  Eccle- 
siastical literature  was  properly  preserved  in  an  edition  of 

44 


Compeiitmn  of  copperplate  engraving 

the  Bible,  and  in  the  writings  of  Thomas  Aquinas,  Cyprian, 
St.  Jerome,  and  Nicolas  de  Lyra.  Books  like  these  that 
could  be  relished  only  by  the  educated  or  devout  must  have 
been  slow  of  sale  in  a  city  with  many  poor  and  illiterates. 

There  was  another  hindrance.  The  competition  of  other 
printers  had  damaged  sales.  Ulric  Hahn  was  not  the  only 
formidable  rival ;  a  rapidly  increasing  number  of  printers  in 
Rome,  Venice,  and  other  Italian  cities  were  producing  many 
books  fi'om  types  of  more  pleasing  form  and  at  lower  price. 

Editions  of  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  were  advanced  in 
the  regular  proportion  of  275,  550,  825,  and  1100  copies.^ 
Of  the  Bible  550  copies  were  printed.  The  only  books  of 
1100  copies  were  the  writings  of  St.  Jerome  and  Nicolas 
de  Lyra.  As  some  of  the  works  appeared  in  two  or  three 
editions  the  complaint  of  slow  sale  needs  an  added  explana- 
tion, for  the  list  of  books  unsold  specifies  reprints  of  the  same 
work.  That  they  had  overprinted  some  books  is  evident; 
but  a  third  edition  would  not  have  been  printed  if  the  first 
and  second  remained  unsold. 

An  unexpected  rival  made  its  appearance  in  the  new  art 
of  copperplate  printing  which  then  was  ushered  in  with  the 
approval  of  Maso  Finiguerra,  a  goldsmith  of  Florence.  It 
seemed  a  much  simpler  process  than  that  of  typography,  for 
it  brought  the  designer  in  more  direct  communication  with 
the  perfect  print.  By  this  process  the  designing  of  separate 
letters  for  movable  type,  type-casting,  and  type-setting  were 
dispensed  with.  Copperplate  prints  were  more  generally 
pleasing;  there  was  a  sharpness  and  clearness  of  outline  on 
their  lettering,  and  a  receding  in  perspective  in  the  pictorial 
subjects,  then  unattainable  from  movable  types  or  engraving 
in  relief.   Sweinheim,  who  is  usually  regarded  as  the  designer 

^  Bernard,  De  rOrigine  et  des  Debuts  de  I'lniprimerie  en  Europe,  vol.  ii,  pp.  152-155. 

45 


The  last  type  of  Arnold  Pannartz 

and  engraver  of  the  punches  for  the  types  used  by  the  firm, 
soon  discerned  the  higher  adaptabihty  of  the  newer  copper- 
plate process  in  the  publishing  of  maps,  a  form  of  printing 
as  yet  not  produced,  which  promised  to  be  more  salable  than 
the  classic  and  ecclesiastical  works  then  made  by  all  printers 
in  excess.  In  1472  Sweinheim  was  maturing  plans  for 
the  publication  of  the  Geography  of  Ptolemy,  which  he  soon 
decided  to  engrave  and  print  without  the  cooperation  of 
Pannartz. 

Arnold  Pannartz  continued  alone  the  typographic  work 
of  the  partnership,  printing  with  types  only,  in  the  house  of 
Peter  de  Maximis.  Although  he  printed  later  many  books 
in  folio  or  quarto  of  classic  authors  and  religious  teachers, 
he  did  not  share  with  Sweinheim  the  full  favor  and  coopera- 
tion of  the  ecclesiastics.    He  died  soon  after  1476. 

The  facsimile  of  his  new  type  on  15^-point  body,  as  here 
shown  in  a  page  from  his  edition  of  St.  ThomaeQuestiones  de 
Veritate,  Rome,  1476,  is  not  a  pleasing  exhibit.  The  round 
letters  of  the  lower-case  are  condensed  and  too  low  for  their 
mated  capitals  on  the  body  of  152-point.  The  smaller  body 
and  condensed  shape  were  undoubtedly  selected  with  an  in- 
tent to  get  more  lines  and  words  on  the  page.  His  new  type 
had  many  peculiarities;  he  retained  the  short  final  s,  dis- 
carded in  the  second  type  of  the  partners,  and  he  made  some 
new  forms  of  accented  letters  and  abbreviations,  but  did  not 
use  the  diphthongs  ?e  and  o^.  Ten  years  of  practice  had  not 
improved  his  workmanship.  In  design,  engraving,  matrix- 
fitting,  type-casting,  and  type-setting,  this  face  of  Pannartz 
shows  no  improvement;  it  is  really  a  degradation  from  the 
standard  of  the  Lactantius.  With  this  book  his  activity 
ended. 


46 


Plate 


ESTIOcft 

e  Vcntate*  di 
rittJO  queritquid 

I  auc  cp  uei|;  fit 
mmno  tde  ens 
.ug9  m  li°  I'olilo 
quloriraicic^Ticm  eft  id  quod  eft.fj 
id  quod  eil  mbd  eft  mfi  eng.  ergo  uc2|; 
ide  figmFicac  otno  ^  ens.^Sed  dice 
bat  9  uerum  di  ens  Tunc  idem  fccundu 
fuppofica  fed  differunc  fj*"  voe^J^Con 
(r3«i9Cio  cuiufiibct  rei  eft:  id  quod  fig*' 
nificaJ  per  fuadifFinitione.  fed  idqcf 
eft  afTignaii  ab  A.ug9.  uc  dtff  nico  ue 
rt  quibufda  alifs  difFitiitoib?  rephatia 
cum  ergo  f^"^  id  quod  eft  conuemane 
uerum  di  ens  uidec  q*  fine  idem  racioe 
^EPrewquecuncj  differunc  rone  its  fe 
babenc  q;  unu  eorum  poc  iceKtgi  fiac 
alio,  undeBoe?  »m  lib^  de  cbdoma . 
dicicq?  poc  rocelligi  deus  tffk  A.  fepeJ^ 
paultf^  ^  mcelleAum  bonieas  etus.ens  * 
aute  nuUo  mo  poc  rateldgi  ft  fe^ecur 
uerum«^a  per  boc  mceldgif  qd  ueru j 
cfVg°  ueru  d^ens  no  differunc  racione 
^PreSi  ueru  no  eft  idem  qd  cn9  opj 
q>  Cc  entis  difpofitio  •  fed  no  poteft  ec 
d/poflcio  totaliter  coirwpcns  atiaB  fe>' 
queret  eft  ueru  g**  e  non  ens.  ficut  fe 
quic.e  bomo  mortuusg*^  non  e  borao. 
(imdicer  non  e  difpoficio  dimraues  afs 
non  fequereJ.e  uerum  ergo  e.frcuc  no 
fequit.c  album  f^™  dcncem  g**  eft  aU 
buffl.fimilicer  no  c  contrabens  ucl  fpeci 
ficans  ens  quia  fie  non  couercerec  cu 
ence  ergo  uerum  di  ens  oio  Tunc  idem 
fiJVe.ilU  quoru^  una  dirpDficio  eft  e 
adem  Tunc  eade  fed  ueri  dl  cncis  e  ea^ 
dem  difpoficio  g°  func  eadera.dr  cro^ 
m.ii.mccbapbudifpofitio  rei  in  elle  e 
Cciic  fua  difpoficio  m  ueruac£  ergo  ue 


rum  dl  ens  func  oio  idem.^Pre.qcffqj 
no  func  idem  adquo  mo  differunc  «fed 
uerum  ec  ens  nullo  mo  differunc  ^a 
differunc  per  ellencia  cu  ens  jp  clfenci 
am  fua  fic  uerum.  nec  eciam  dm  ^  af  s 
dfos  quia  9  in  aliquo  gencre  coue 
mrenc  g°  func  oio  idem. uel  fi  no  func 
010  idem  op;  9  ueru^  aliquid  fu^  ens 
addac  fed  mbil  addic  uerum  fuper  ens 
cum  fic  eCia  ra  plus  5  ens  qd  pacec  p 
pbilofopbu«  luumecbapbudicence  ue 
rum  dtffitnences  dicimus  elTe  qd  eft  ac 
non  cile  qd  non  eft*  &.  fic  ue 2^  icludic 
ens  e(.  non  ens  ergo  uerum  non  addic 
fup  ens  •  ^  fic  ur  010  effe  idc^  q?  ens* 
llSed  cocra  nugdco  e  muctds  repeco 
fi  ergo  ueru  effec  idem  qd  ens  eff^  nu 
gacio  cum  dicic  ens  e  uerum  qd  fal^ 
fum  c  ergo  non  func  idc.fll?re  .ens  dC 
bonu  couercuncur  fed  ueru  no  couerct 
cur  cu  bono  abquid  em^  e  uerum  quod 
no  eft  bonu  ficuc  iftu  for  mean  g^  nec 
uerum  cff  enCecbuertiu^p^iBocci? 
in  (ibro  deebdoma*  m  omnibus  crea 
curis  diuerfum  e  efie-a^  quod  e.f^  ue^ 
rum  feqmJ  elfe  rcru  ergo  ueru  diucr^ 
fum  e  a  quo  eft  in  creacuns  fed  qd  eft 
idem  e  9  ens  ergo  uerum  creaturis 
eft  diuerfum  ab  ence»(lJ?re»quecunq{ 
fe  babenc  uc  priua  dl  pofterius  og  eS 
diuerfa  fed  ueru  dl  ens  func  b9modi « 
quia  uc  dici{  in  lib^  de  caufis* prima 
rcru  creataru  eft  effe.fi^  comencator  fu 
per  eunde  libru  o!a  alia  dicunH  per  in 
formacione  de  ence  dl  fic  func  encepo 
fteriora  ergo  ueru  dl  enf  func  diuerfa 
()J?re.ea  que  dicunJ  coiter  de  caufa 
dl  cauGficis  magis  func  unu  m  caufa  ^ 
in  Caufacis  dl  pcipue  in  deo  ifta  qcuor 
ens  unit  ueru  dl  bonu  ficapproprianc 
9eneadefienciS  perctoeac.unum  ad 
perfona  pacrL6.uerit  ad  perfona^  filu 
\ 


Arnold  Pannartz.  Rome,  1476 
St.  Thomae  Questiones  de  Veritate 

15§-point 


Conrad  Sweinlieim.    Rome,  147S 
Ptolemy's  G-eography.   Edition  of  Peter  cle  Torre.   Rome,  l-iOO 


CONRAD  SWEINHEIM 


In  1473  Conrad  Sweinheim  must  have  withdrawn  from  the 
partnership,  for  his  name  no  longer  appears  on  the  books 
of  Pannartz  after  this  date.  For  the  formidable  task  of 
engraving  and  publishing  the  old  maps  of  the  Geography  of 
Ptolemy,  for  which  he  was  well  qualified,  Sweinheim  asso- 
ciated himself  with  his  German  friend  Arnold  Bucking.  A 
translation  in  Latin  had  been  provided  by  Jacobus  Angelus 
Florentinus,  as  early  as  the  fifteenth  century.  This  newly 
printed  book  of  maps,  described  by  Brunet  as  "precious 
and  rare,"  contains  twenty- seven  maps  engraved  on  copper: 
one  general  map,  ten  maps  for  Europe,  four  for  Africa,  and 
twelve  for  Asia. 

The  book  had  been  planned  on  a  grand  scale,  with  maps 
to  appear  upon  a  wide  leaf  22  x  16  inches.  As  it  was  im- 
practicable at  that  time  to  print  copperplates  of  double  size 
at  one  impression,  it  was  necessary  to  have  each  map  of  full 
size  divided  to  appear  in  two  parts  on  two  facing  pages. 
Bach  map  was  separately  engraved  and  separately  printed 
from  two  plates  by  separate  impressions  upon  these  sheets. 
The  first  half  plate  of  each  map  had  to  be  printed  on  the 
fourth  page  of  a  folded  sheet,  and  the  right  half  of  the  same 
map  on  the  first  page  of  another  facing  sheet.  The  preser- 
vation of  visible  connection  between  the  two  distinct  prints 
was  troublesome,  but  it  was  skilfully  done  in  the  bound  book. 
When  spread  out  the  maps  made  an  extension  of  nearly  two 
feet,  in  an  unhandy  size  and  shape  for  binding  and  for  the 
convenience  of  the  student. 

49 


Neat  work  on  the  Geography  of  Ptolemy 

To  make  the  separated  sheets  sufficiently  secure  required 
the  folding  of  each  sheet  through  its  center,  hy  nesting  one 
within  another  in  quaternions  or  sections  of  foui'  douhled 
leaves,  which  were  afterward  assembled  and  sewed  by  the 
hinder,  so  that  each  half  map  should  properly  face  its  mated 
half.  The  back  or  verso  of  each  plate  was  unavoidably 
hlank.  The  proper  putting  together  of  these  bisected  maps 
was  a  difficult  task. 

Engraved  lines  on  these  maps,  fi'om  a  graver  held  and 
guided  by  the  hand,  are  easily  traceable  in  the  outline  of 
countries,  rivers,  mountains,  seas,  and  marks  of  latitude  and 
longitude,  but  they  are  not  of  a  quality  that  calls  for  comment; 
it  is  the  beauty  and  uniformity  of  the  lettering  in  three 
distinct  sizes  of  capitals  which  are  used  to  give  definite  names 
to  countries,  cities,  towns,  rivers,  seas,  etc.,  that  demands 
explanation.  The  three  sizes  of  capital  letters  show  an  un- 
expected uniformity  in  each  series,  with  remarkable  graces 
of  design  that  would  not  have  heen  produced  if  each  letter 
had  heen  separately  cut  by  the  engraver. 

Sweinheim  had  profited  by  his  punch-cutting  experiences 
and  had  applied  one  of  its  processes  to  the  forming  of  letters 
upon  a  plate.  To  prevent  the  repeated  engraving  of  the 
same  alphabetical  letter  he  decided  to  cut  each  letter  once 
only,  but  with  more  than  ordinary  care,  on  the  end  of  a  steel 
rod  and  to  use  this  rod  as  a  type-founder's  punch.  To  form 
on  the  plate  the  word  desired,  the  punch  for  each  letter  was 
separately  selected,  and  each  one  was  successively  struck 
with  a  mallet  and  punched  on  the  plate  to  the  depth  needed 
for  the  retention  of  printing  ink.  This  treatment,  opus 
mallei,  an  old  process  much  approved  by  goldsmiths,  gave 
to  the  letters  of  print  absolute  uniformity  of  face,  with  all 
the  sharpness  of  the  original  engraving  on  the  punch.  These 

50 


Plate  8 


loci's  ncc  flammastnunc  uaporcs.nucfumos 
crunpat  Exindedenic^ethne  mentis  p  tot  fe^ 
cula  duratincedmm.Et  ubiacriorafptramen 
ta  cauernaru  uetus  mcubi't  arenarum  cumuli 
eriguntur  Accedunt&perpetua  fomenta  in^ 
fula^  cohtum  ueluti'  I'pfi's  undis  alatur  inccn^ 
dium.Ne<]^eni'm  in  ta  angufti's  tcrmis,  ahteri 
durareptotfeculatantus  ignis  potuiflet^nif 
fiChumorisnutn'menti'saleretur  Hmc  igitur 
fabule  fcillam  SCcaribdem  peperc  hinc  latrat? 
auditur.hincmoftri  icrcdita  fimulacra  dum 
nauigantibusmagmsuerticibus  pelagi  defi'^ 
dentes  cxten'tiilatrare  putatmndas  quas  for^ 
bentis  cftisuorago  coIIidit.Eademcaufactia 
cthne  montis  pcrpetu  os  igncs  facit^Na  aqua 
rum  illcconcutfus  rapto  fecum  fpiritu  i  y  mu 
profundum  trahit:atc^ibifuffocatum  ta  diu 
tenet  donee  per  fpiramenta  terrc  ditfufus  nu** 
tn'menta  ignis  inccndat.Conftat  autem  ad  cx 
emplum  gehennc  cm  ignis  perpetua  inccndia 
fpirabuntadpunicndospeccatorcfquicrucia 
bunturmfecuIafeculo^Namficut  I'fti  mon 
tes  tanta  tcmporis  diuturnitaccuf^  nunc  fla^ 
miscxeftuann'buspcrlcucrant.ita  ut  nu^  cx 
tinguipoflint  Sic  iflc  ignis  gehennc  ad  cruci^ 
anda corpora  damnacorum  finem.niiquam 
habituruseft;* 


HOC  OPVS  PTHOLOMEI  MEMO 
RABILECiVIDEMETINSIGNE  EX 
ACTISSIMA  DILIGENTIA  CASTI 
GATVM IVCONDO  QVODAMCA 
RACTERE  IMPRESS VMFVIT  ET 
COMPLETVMROME  ANNO  A  NA 
TIVITATEDOMINLM.CCCC.  LX^ 
XXX.  DIE.IV.NOVEMBRIS.  ARTE 
ACIMPENSISPETRI DETVRRE* 

Conrad  Sweinlieim.   Rome,  1478 
Ptolemy's  Geography.  Edition  of  Peter  de  Torre.  Rome,  1490 


16-point 


Planning  of  the  Geography  of  Ptolemy 

letters  are  of  capital  form  only,  but  they  show  harmony  with 
one  another  and  a  sense  of  carefully  adjusted  proportion 
much  admired  by  all  bibliographers.  Bernard  says  that  no 
capitals  made  by  following  typographers  can  compare  with 
them  for  merit — not  even  those  made  by  Nicolas  Jenson. 

This  edition  of  the  Geography  of  Ptolemy  has  distinction 
as  the  first  book  of  maps  illustrated  with  prints  from  copper- 
plates; but  Sweinheim  did  not  live  to  complete  his  grand 
work,  for  he  died  before  1478,  leaving  his  unfinished  book  to 
be  published  in  that  year  by  his  successor,  Arnold  Bucking. 

To  explain  these  maps  many  pages  of  type  work  were 
provided.  These  pages,  set  in  a  lower-case  type  of  about 
16-point,  were  in  two  columns  with  a  broad  center  band  of 
white  between,  making  a  printing  surface  of  7i  x  1 H  inches, 
53  lines  to  the  page.  Irregular  fractions  of  Arabic  form 
that  must  have  been  troublesome  to  cut  are  frequent.  The 
type  is  of  bold  face,  with  few  hair-lines  and  stubby  serifs; 
the  capital  letters  of  the  colophon  are  thick  and  close  spaced 
in  composition.  Leaves  are  not  numbered,  but  a  running 
title  of  Roman  numerals  specifies  the  part  of  the  book  treated 
on  the  page  below  that  title.  Its  paper  is  sized;  not  un- 
duly thick  nor  of  rough  face,  but  white,  clear,  and  strong. 
The  bold  letters  of  the  text  are  in  striking  contrast  to  the 
light,  neat,  and  graceful  letters  of  the  engraved  maps. 

Sweinheim  is  accredited  as  the  designer  not  only  of  the 
lettering  on  the  maps  but  of  the  types  of  the  text,  which  are 
strong,  clear,  and  readable,  although  inferior  in  grace  to  the 
letters  used  in  the  maps.  The  type- founding  is  above  the 
average  of  its  time.  Lines  are  of  uniform  length,  capitals 
are  admirably  proportioned  one  to  another ;  hyphens  connect 
divided  words.  Signatures  to  prevent  the  misplacement  of 
leaves  by  the  bookbinder  appear  in  proper  places. 


ULRIC  HAHN 


TJlric  Hahn,  born  at  Ingolstadt  in  Bavaria,  afterward  a 
citizen  of  Vienna,  began  to  print  at  Rome  in  1467.  His 
first  book  was  The  Meditations  of  Cardinal  Turrecremata,  a 
folio  of  thirty-four  leaves,  printed  from  types  of  large  size 
and  Gothic  form,  that  are  supposed  to  have  been  brought 
from  Austria.  Attempt  was  made  to  give  added  attraction 
to  the  book  by  gracing  it  with  rude  engravings  in  outHne. 

Ulric  Hahn's  name  appears  in  Hain's  Repertory  in  the 
Latinized  form  of  "Gallus";  and  this  Latinized  name  was 
frequently  used  by  him  in  a  punning  way.  He  offered  it  as 
the  proper  synonym  for  the  fowl  or  goose  which  according  to 
tradition  once  saved  Rome  from  barbarians.  Li  some 
colophons  he  names  himself  Udalricus  Barbatus.^ 

In  1470  his  printing  house  showed  remarkable  activity. 
He  had  engaged  for  his  editor  and  corrector  of  the  press  the 
ecclesiastic,  John  Anthony  Oampanus,  with  whose  aid  he 
prepared  and  published  soon  after  twelve  volumes  in  folio, 
mostly  of  a  theological  nature.  Campanus  left  Rome  in 
1471 ;  but  his  duties  were  assumed  by  Simon  Nicolas  Ohar- 
della,  with  whose  assistance  Hahn  undertook  the  pubHcation 
of  other  large  works.  Ohardella's  enthusiasm  for  printing 
was  as  strong  as  that  of  Hahn.  In  one  of  his  books  he  says, 
"Having  compassion  on  the  poverty  of  the  poor,  and  consider- 
ing the  scarcity  of  the  rich,  he  (Hahn)  is  resolved  to  make 

'Anser  Tarpeii  custos  Jovis,  unde,  quod  alis 

Constreperes,  Gallus  decidit.  Ultor  adest: 
Udalricus  Gallus,  ne  queni  poscaiitur  in  iisuiTj, 

Edocuit  pennis  nil  opus  esse  tuis. 
Imprimit  ille  die  quantum  non  scribitur  anno. 

Ingenio,  baud  noceas,  omnia  vincit  bomo. 

53 


Printers  induced  to  make  smaller  types 

books  after  a  careful  revision  of  their  texts  by  learned  men." 
He  also  adds  that  Hahn  was  then  producing  three  thousand 
volumes  in  a  year — more  than  could  have  been  done  in  the 
century  before,  so  much  did  the  new  art  of  printing  surpass 
the  old  method  of  writing. 

Ohardella  ceased  to  be  helpful  at  the  end  of  1474,  but 
Ulric  Hahn  continued  to  print  until  his  death  in  1478.  His 
last  work  was  another  edition  of  The  Meditations  of  Cardinal 
Turrecremata,  dated  December  31,  1478. 

Hahn  was  active  as  a  type-founder  as  well  as  a  publisher. 
Proctor  accredits  him  with  seven  fonts  of  type,  Roman,  Semi- 
roman,  and  Gothic,  that  were  used  in  printing  some  sixty 
books  between  the  years  1468  and  1478. 

The  accompanying  facsimile  of  a  page  of  Hahn's  edition 
of  Summa  Oratorum  Omnium  presents  another  indication  of 
the  desire  of  early  printers  to  compress  matter  within  a 
smaller  space.  Types  previously  presented  were  on  15- 
16-  or  17 -point  bodies  or  their  intermediates,  but  this  is  of 
14-point.  The  additional  compactness  desired  was  secured 
by  shortening  ascenders  and  descenders  so  that  more  lines  of 
print  could  be  put  on  the  page.  The  small  letters  of  the 
lower-case  are  taller  in  height,  but  the  round  letters  like  o, 
e,  and  c  have  not  been  noticeably  condensed.  Its  capitals, 
of  unusual  width,  are  not  harmonious ;  E  and  M  seem  un- 
duly wide  for  other  letters  that  seem  relatively  pinched. 
Unlike  other  printers,  Hahn  made  the  final  lower-case  s  of  a 
full  width ;  but  his  a,  of  which  he  made  two  forms,  is  only  a 
slight  improvement  on  the  cramped  a  made  by  Sweinheim 
and  Pannartz.  Abbreviations,  double  letters,  and  accented 
letters  are  frequent.  Hahn  also  made  another  size  of  Semi- 
roman  type  on  the  much  smaller  body  of  12i  points,  with 
which  he  printed  an  edition  of  Cicero  in  1468. 

54 


Plate  9 


O  ratorum  omniu:Poetartim:Iftoricoi^;acpbiIofopbonim 
deganter  dicfVa :  p  Clarifllmum  virum  Albertum  de  Eiib» 
m  vnum  coUeAa  Feliciter  Incipiunt« 

LBERTVS  DE .  EHB .  S.  D.  N.  PIT.  ir. 
PON.  MAX.  SECRETARTVS.  REVE/ 
redlfllmom  Xpo  pri:&  dno  dno  lobani  dei  gf  a  epo 
7Vlonafterienfi;ComitiPaIatmo  Rbent:  ac  Bauarie 
duciIliuftriflimo:SaIutem  plurtma  dicitrfic  prefens 
dedicat  opus.   Opta  (ii  fepenumero  Reueren  pater 
ac  pnceps  liluftrifllme:  Heroicarumcultor  virtutu 
ut  fi  quado  mibi  adeflet  odummonullas  artis  Rbe/ 
torice  pceptiones.'diuerfas  claufularum  variationcs: 
acplurimas  tarn  oratorumrg  poctaru3:ac  Iftoricojj: 
autoritates:  diuerfis  in  voluminibus  Cparfasidc  vage  difiecf^as :  dicftu  quide 
dd  memoratu  digniflimasrque  ad  ornatd.concmna«fplendidam  &  refonante 
orationem:acad  bene  beatec^  viuendum  admodum  conducerentrfie  expedi/ 
rent:  in  vnam(2ut  documenta  fumere  uolentibus  longe  mquifitois  labor  ab 
eflet)diligerem  confonantia:at<^in  facilem  quenda  reducere  modum.Etfi 
ea  res:fuper  qua  fermonem  fepenumeroin  multam  ^uxinius  noAemrln^ 
niti  pene  fit  operis  dc  immenfiradeo  ut  vnde  inicium:  vnde  mediu^;  &;  unde 
denic^  finemrm  tante  rei  magnitudine  fummamon  iniuria  fubfiftam:  Ac  tS 
turn  autoritatis:tantumcg  dignitatis  &  excellentie  contineat:utn6  infimu^ 
aut  mediocrem  uirum  dsfatigaretrfed  fummu:  ac  ,fpe  diuinum  oratorem  id 
aggredi  perborrefcere  g  plurimum  faccret :  Tamen  tuas  ne  prcces :  que  fe/ 
dulo  imperii  mibi  loco  funt  dc  que  boc  conficiendi  opus  meis  modo  rationi 
bus  alligarunt.videar  declinare(^tibi  enim  quicgdpoflum  debeo:  dc  me  non 
modo  buic  rei:  veru  cuicuc^  poffibili  deiuncftumroDnoviumcp  tcnes)niateri 
am  longe  paten  tern  :anguftis  finlbus  terminabo  &c  in  ucrba  qpotero(^  No 
eni^  cuncfta  compIeAendi  mibi  cupido  inccflit)conferam  pauciflima.  iuxta 
Ouidii  uerba*  Qyicquid  pcipies  efto  breuis  ut  dto  dicfta  pcrdpiat  dodles 
teneantq?  fideles.  Ad  boc  enim  inftituendum  opusmulla  magis  meres  ex 
citauit  pater  bumanifUmerq  ut  tue  imprimis  clementierq  iampridem  vmcej 
atcp  reUgiofifllme  colui  complaceremrtametfi.  no  nibil  ipia  me  gloria  moue/ 
bat:que  (i  meritis.'aut  uirtute  pta  e)ctitit:femper  eft  a  fummis  uiris  magno 
ftudio  quefLta;&  a  iapientibusbominibus  maxime  laudata.  Nonnibiletia^ 
exercendarum  ingemi  uirium  mecaufeinducebattquia  queadmodum  trifte 
eft  diuiti  decedere  fine  berederita  mifernmum  eft  babenti  a  deo  fummo  gra 
tia  intellecft^rpofteris  fuis:id  eft  ftudiofis  nibil  ornatum  dimittere:quo  pof 
fint  ueluti  beredesintellecfhjs  aliqualiter  confolari.Et  lic^  tot  in  omnifcien 
tia:&  in  primis  in  oratorieartis  facultate  fcripferintrut  iam  mundu  pene  il/ 
luminauerintradbuc  tn  inueniendis  inuenta  no  obftant.Inftar  enifolis  ow 
tur  intelIeAus:5ci  ocadtt:  vadit  dcrediit:  &;  nunq  morit .    Nunc  boc  unuj 
princeps  clementiflIme:equo  fer  animo  uelim;  vt  meu  buic  fit  operi  c5fecra/ 


Ulric  Halin.    Home,  1475 
Albertus  de  Eyb :  Summa  Oratorum  Omnium 

li-polnt 


JOHN  PHILIP  DE  LIGNAMINE 


John  Philip  db  Lignamine  was  an  early  printer  at  Rome 
who  also  had  a  local  reputation  as  author,  editor,  and  chroni- 
cler. For  the  literary  side  of  his  duties  he  had  been  well 
qualified  by  the  good  fortune  of  noble  birth  and  a  liberal  edu- 
cation in  the  profession  of  medicine,  but  there  is  no  record  of 
his  tutelage  at  typography. 

De  Lignamine  began  to  print  in  1470  and  continued  until 
1476.  Then  followed  a  period  of  inactivity.  A  few  books 
are  known  to  have  been  produced  by  him  between  1481  and 
1484,  of  which  the  facsimile  of  S.  Bonaventure  is  a  fair 
exhibit,  but  his  edition  of  Laurentius  Valla,  of  1471,  is  the 
best  specimen  of  his  press.  Many  of  the  books  and  pamphlets 
that  followed  are  of  a  smaller  size  and  of  inferior  present 
value,  apparently  produced  to  supply  temporary  require- 
ments. The  facsimile  here  shown  is  from  a  thin  pamphlet 
of  twenty  leaves,  entitled  Oratio  in  vitum  et  merita  divi  S. 
Bonaventure,  which  was  printed  in  1482.  Its  small  face 
of  type,  on  16 -point  body,  was  apparently  made  by  inex- 
perts ;  its  presswork,  here  pale,  there  overinked  and  uneven, 
is  on  unsized  paper  of  dingy  tint. 

His  Oronica  Pontificum  Imperatorum  (1474)  contains 
de  Lignamine's  version  of  the  German  invention  of  printing 
in  Mainz,  and  specially  notes  the  names  of  Gutenberg,  Fust, 
and  Mentel  as  printers  between  the  years  1458  and  1464. 

De  Lignamine  held  an  honorary  office  under  Pope  Six- 
tus  IV,  and  worthily  received  distinction  as  a  learned  man; 
but  he  cannot  be  classed  with  the  masters  of  printing  in 
Italy.    In  sixteen  years  he  made  about  forty  books. 

56 


Plate  10 


lO.PHlLIPPVS  LIGNAMINE  EQijESSI/ 
CVL  VS  DlVl  SIXTI  Qu/VRTI  PONTIR 
CISMAXIMI  FAMILIARIS  OMNIBVS 
CHRISTIANE  RELIGIONIS  PROFESSO 
RIBVS  SAL VTEM  IN  DOMINO. 

VDITE  HEC  OMNES  GEN/ 
test  auribuspercipice qui  babicatis 
orbcm.Quicj  tcrrigenac  8C  filii  bo/ 
minum  fimul  in  unum  diues  fiC  pau 
per.Os  mcti  loquef  fapientia:5^  meditatio  cor/. 
d(s  mci  prudcntia.  fapientia  inqua  5C  prudcntia. 
fan^tiiTimi  dni  noftri  diui  Sixti  quarti  pon.max 
qui  cum  efTet  ab  ipo  natali  diuina  quadam  pro/ 
uidcutia  dC  in  bumanu  genus  benignitatc  religio 
ni  minorumc^  ordini  dcftinatus  in  ca  adultus  id 
cflfecit:ut  ucre  fibi  fapientic  laudcm  compararct; 
ecquodtamanoftrisq  auctcribus  do(fli(Timis 
ac  fancftirfimis  pbilofopbis  acccpcrat  rc  ipfa  oftc 
deret.ut  fe  bomincm  mcminifTet:  ad  bominil  utl 
litatem  effe  natum  opcram  dedit  quantum  in  co 
fuit  in  quocuc^  dignitatis  gradu  ut  quatuor  illis 
rebus; quibus  cx  platonis  fentcntia  beneficcntic 
opcrationes  eXcrcentur  opera  fcilicet  5c  uiribusV 
orarionc  ac  opibus  multis  cgentibus  tmo  olbus 
©petit  ferref  carnqt  uitc  ratio  iiem  fcmp  tcnuittut 


John  Philip  de  Lig-namine.  Rome,  1482 
Oratio  In  vitum  et  merita  divi  S.  Bonaventure 

16-poiiit 


GEORGE  HEROLT 


George  Herolt  of  Bamberg  has  distinction  as  a  careful 
type-founder  and  printer,  as  will  be  more  plainly  perceived 
in  the  accompanying  facsimile  of  a  page  of  his  Origenis 
Proaemium  contra  Oelsum,  etc.  Laire  commends  his  "ele- 
gant Roman  letter,"  which  was  more  carefully  designed  and 
neatly  cut  than  the  type  of  any  rival  of  his  time  in  Rome: 
in  symmetry  and  alinement  his  types  are  as  harmonious  as 
those  of  Jenson  of  Venice.  Following  the  prevailing  fashion, 
his  types  are  fitted  to  one  another  with  great  closeness,  but 
not  to  indistinctness.  The  capital  letters  have  thick  strokes 
that  give  them  the  needed  prominence,  but  they  do  not  seem 
too  bold  in  combination  with  their  mated  lower-case  letters. 
The  final  lower-case  s  is  of  fair  width,  much  more  pleas- 
ing than  the  pinched  s  of  more  famous  printers  in  Venice; 
but  the  cramping  of  structural  lines  in  the  a  and  e  is  in 
obedience  to  old  usage  repeated.  But  few  characters  were 
used.  The  diphthongs  se  and  oe  seldom  appear.  .  :  and  ^ 
are  the  only  points  of  punctuation.  The  hyphen  is  not  used 
for  a  divided  word.  As  was  then  customary,  there  is  no  sep- 
arate type  for  v,  but  there  are  many  accented,  abbreviated, 
and  conjoined  characters.  Judged  by  modern  standards  the 
types  here  shown  of  Herolt  are  insufficient  for  the  exact 
rendering  of  a  classic  text,  but  the  general  effect  of  his  page 
is  admirable  for  neat  workmanship,  as  noticeable  in  press- 
work  as  in  the  designing,  engraving,  and  casting  of  types. 

Proctor  credits  Herolt  with  thirty- seven  books  in  the 
British  Museum.  In  four  others  he  was  aided  by  Sixtus 
Riessinger,  who  had  been  a  notable  printer  at  Naples  in  1471. 

58 


Plate  11 


ORIGENISPROAEMIVM  CONTRA  CELSVM  ET 
IN  HDEI CHRISTIANAE  DEFENSIONEM  LIBER.I. 

^^Ortaris  facer  Ambrofi  ut  Cclfit  ctfi 
;  gcntilis  &  philofophi  hominis  obie 
(^iones:  in  chriftiana  religione  obla 
I  trantis:^  noftro  arbitrio  refutemus. 
,  Ipfc  ucro:  ccfi  afliduis  &  magnis:  ut 
I  ^  te  nofti:Laboribus  interpcllonqp 
pc  qui  facras  littcras  omnes  incerprc 
I  \  tandi  prouincia  mihi  defumpfcrim: 
'  haudquaq  tamcn  pro  maximis  tuis 
^  ^  ^  ^  ^  ^  i^e  benefidistad  re  non  minus  ho 
icfSn  q  ncceflarii  hortanti  tibi  fum  defiiturus^Quis  enim  tarn 
Itfuis  philofophi  dicacitatis  petulatia  culeritr'q  fuis  tenebris  qbus 
immcrgit"  nihil  concentustuel  aliis  has  ipfas  ut  ingerat  enitaf  tq 
de  rcrum  conditorc  optime  fentiat:&  eius  uelit  difciplina  &  infli 
tuta  obftrepedo  perucrcere:qui  a  mortc  homines  reuocauit  ad  ui 
tam:&crrantibus  immortalitatis  iter  oftedit.Enimuero  de  rebus 
humanis  tam  bene  mereri  poteft:  q  peftiferos  errores  fuftulerictq 
qui  pic  docet  innocecerc^  uiucre.Taetfi  illd  dicere  aufim  nemine 
ufpia  inuenin  qui  diuinis  fit  Iris  apprimc  eruditus:  &  uer5  dei  m 
xpo  caritatcm  adeptus:  qui  delirantibus  Celfi  diAistadt  fui  fimi 
bum  uel  nutet  uel  paenitus  moueaf  ♦  no  enimaxpi  fide:ut  ucte^ 

?iuonda  pdi<?lionibus:ita  ipofteru  re  ipfa  &  miraculis  aptius  co 
irmata  tam  leuiter  quiuis  defecerit*  Quis  enim  inqt  Apoftolus 
a  caritate  dei  nos  feparabitr'afflidio  an  anguftiaian  pfecutio:  an 
fames:an  nuditas:an  periculu:an  gladiusfquatis  olim  pleric^  af 
fedi  fuppliciistq  miferis  mois  excruciatinn  fide  ftabiles  pftiftcf ♦ 
Sed  cu  infirmiores  fmt  in  ecclefia  quida:quos  Paulus  fufcipicdof 
clTe  comonefacitmo  ab  re  fiierit  deliri  hominis  ineptias  refucare; 
ne  forte  qui  recens  ad  uerailla  Sddiuina  fe  contulitdifciplinatfiue 
uerbo^  Icnocinio  quodam  ille(fhis:  fiuc  priftina  fua  be  praua  ad 

Georg-e  Herolt.   Rome,  1481 
Origenis  Prosemium  contra  Celsum 

15i-point 


GEORGE  LAUER 


George  Lauer,  a  native  of  Wiirzburg,  Germany,  began  Ms 
work  as  printer  at  Rome  in  1470  at  the  Eusebian  Monas- 
tery, invited  there  by  ecclesiastics  of  eminence.  It  is  not 
known  where  he  acquired  his  knowledge  of  printing.  He 
was  assisted  in  the  monastery  by  Pomponius  Laetus  and 
Bartholomew  Platina,  who  were  the  editors  and  correctors  of 
the  monastery  press.  Between  1470  and  1472  he  produced 
twelve  books.  In  1472  he  associated  himself  with  Leonard 
Pfliigl,  a  German  printer  then  at  Rome,  and  they  worked, 
sometimes  together,  sometimes  independently,  until  1474, 
but  did  not  produce  many  books.  Between  1474  and  1481, 
printing  without  a  partner,  Lauer  issued  more  than  forty 
books,  but  several  of  them  have  no  date. 

The  books  of  Lauer  have  earned  merited  praise  from  early 
bibliographers  for  their  accuracy,  but  Lauer  cannot  be  com- 
mended for  superior  mechanical  workmanship.  Haebler  iden- 
tifies ten  faces  of  type,  Roman  and  Gothic,  used  by  Lauer 
and  Pfliigl,  but  all  are  rude.  In  1482  these  types  were  in 
the  possession  of  Guldinbeck,  another  German  printer  then 
at  work  in  Rome. 

Laire,  in  his  History  of  the  Typography  of  Rome  (1778), 
specifies  twenty- seven  printing  houses  in  or  near  that  city 
before  the  year  1500.  Research  has  increased  the  number. 
Proctor,  in  his  Index  to  the  Early  Printed  Books  in  the 
British  Museum,  specifies  thirty-eight  presses  in  Rome  dur- 
ing the  same  period,  with  mention  of  many  undated  books 
that  cannot  be  traced  with  exactness  to  the  proper  printer, 

60 


Plate  12 


Aulo  apoftolo  tefte:pme  qua  fcrlbit  ad  chontheos 
epiftole.xi'i.capitulo.  Dmi'fioes  graj^funt.unus  autfpincus, 
uius  ueritas  diCti  licet  I'n  cudtis  ui'dea£  hoibus.maxime  tn  in  ipGs 
duobusu'nterptrandi  gratia  adeptis.  In  Fracifco  uidelicet  an'etmo 
A  alio  quodatn  ueten'.Omelias  beatifTitniloKis  Chr^foftomi.fup 
,  lohannefilm  tonitruude  grcco  inlatmu  tratferetibus.  Fracifco 
eni'm  huic  noftroicuius  tranf  latione  hoc  pfcns  continet  uolumen, 
weliore  pte  dedit.ut  dare  patet  oniibus  utn'ufq;  dida  c5feretibuC 
Quod  em  pmus  co&ife  6c  generalibus  traftulit  uocabulis.  hoc  ifte 
non:er:tan^  ante  oculos  pofuitTpectalius.imtnofinguIan'us  decla** 
tado  :6c  ftilo  ornation  le^lorum  corda  demulcendo .  Quaproptet 
amboTUm  nobis oblatisprenominatorumopibus.placui't  6chaud 
dubi'um  placebit  5c  alii's  .tati  um  p  raundu  difpergere  labore  :Ut  * 
tpe  nedu  men'tu.fed  etia  apud  deu  6cfandlos  eius  habeat  bonorc. 
Correiflas  autem  ipCas  omelias  fecure  guifcj-  I'ntelliget  rdumraodo 
fubfcn'pcis  pauculis:aure  cordis  apen'at.  Priaiu  ne  latcat  ledlorem: 
ipm  beatu  Chryfoftomu  alia  a  raoderna  toti'us  bibliefeg  tranf  la** 
tione.  Idcirco  no  credat  uicio  fcriptoj-J  tn'buendu  :fi  diflbnantem 
uecbis  facre  pagme  rcperierit  auton'tat  e.  Jnfup  6c  traf  latons  ufu 
potuit  euenire.  Sicutl.xxxu.omelia  de  hoc  Moifi  diflo.prophe'' 
tafufcitabit  uobis  doirinus.quod  trafpotitu  eft  m  uerbis:apparet. 
6c  etiam  alibi  in  locis  nonuUis.  In.lxvi-Oranes  traha  ad  tneipfura. 
Vfus  habet.Omma  traha  ad meipm ,  6c  cetera.Eft  6c  aliud  nota^ 
du^rudioribus;^raris.6cfingulan'buf;utit^  uerbis  6c  locutioi'bus 
quas  6c  0  doftis  uiris  non  opus  fit .  aid's  tamcn  non  fic  .{ed  utile  eft 
dcclarare.  In  ,xxx.Perdi'us:6c  Pernox-In ,  xiix .  Conftat  pro  co^ 
fonat  uel  concordat,  In.lvm-pomV  hecdro.Boni  6c  mafuetiuW 
tnftar:  6c  totius  ciuitatis.  Inftar^  exeplari  uel  cxemplo.  Loqui  ad 
gram,  aut  ad  uolutatc. ^p  adulan'  traftcr£  fepi'us.  In.xxxi.  Teport 
ea  rephcndit.rara  coftrudtio.  In.xxxui'i.  IpG  audiretA  In.xl  v»i 
Mihi  non  audicis.  In.xv».Reuerterunt.6c  alibi.  Conuerti'raus 
ad  getes.  In  plerifcp  locis.  Supplicia  manent.pto  iramfnent.  Penas 
dacurt.Derau  T  Gmplicibus  termmis  ne  errare  cotmgat.  In  pn'mfe 

G-eorge  Lauer.   Rome,  1470 
Joannes  Chrysostomus 

Scant  18-point 


Other  Roman  printers  of  celebrity 

but  are  known  to  have  been  printed  there  at  an  early  date. 
Panzer  estimated  the  production  of  Roman  printers  before 
1500  at  one  thousand  distinct  works.  It  is  probable  that 
others  have  been  lost  and  are  now  unknown.  Adam  Rot, 
John  Reinhard,  John  Schurener,  Barth.  Guldinbeck,  Wolff 
Hahn,  John  Bulle  of  Bremen,  Andreas  Freitag  and  John 
Besicken  are  the  names  of  other  Roman  printers  of  note. 
The  names  indicate  German  birth  and  education.  This 
conclusion  is  warranted  by  their  occasional  use  of  Gothic 
types  for  devotional  books  of  inferior  size.  A  few  unnamed 
Italians  were  connected  with  these  early  printing  houses, 
but  mainly  as  patrons  or  money-lenders.  They  did  not 
desire  to  have  their  names  appear  as  partners. 

Stephan  Plannck  succeeded  to  the  business  of  Ulric 
Hahn.  Between  1479  and  1500  this  printing  house  issued 
more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  books  with  assignable  dates. 
About  one  hundred  undated  books  have  been  identified  as  in 
the  types  of  Stephan  Plannck,  who  had  at  least  twelve 
sizes  and  faces  of  Roman  and  Gothic  types.  Few  classic 
authors  appear  in  the  list ;  the  larger  part  are  ecclesiastical 
or  scholastic. 

Eucharius  Silber  was  another  prominent  printer  at  Rome 
after  the  year  1480.  He  produced  many  books  from  faces 
and  sizes  of  type  not  inferior  to  those  of  Plannck. 

There  were  some  other  printers  of  merit  in  Rome  at  the 
close  of  the  century,  but  that  city  had  lost  much  of  its 
attractiveness  to  the  craft.  Venice  took  the  lead  and  kept 
it.  Florence,  Milan,  Naples,  and  some  small  towns  and  cities 
were  as  eminent  as  Rome  for  their  printing.  The  sons  of 
Aldus  Manutius  were  induced  to  go  to  Rome.  The  work 
they  did  there  maintained,  but  did  not  increase,  the  Aldine 
reputation. 

62 


Plate  13 


ran(aoqucinduftCacrarisauro:Vifccriba"! complex  tuisfu  bonore:  cu  infolerer  la^barer  aim 
poeuseratinuifus.luuenalifquep indignaaone cu  norat& Paridc  panrhomimu  : cumseraua 
noocarminis memo Papiniu corona ru fuille innuit ab his uerfibus  totu Tatyncu opus inchoa 
uii:SedoccuIrauit  dmmox  cu  magno  fucceffu  audiref  eoshuic  fatyra:  infcrLiir .  Dia  a'rhxc  m 
Papiniu  cx  ftomacho:ud_iIle  iierfus  famindicar.haud  tame  inuideas  uariiquc  pulpita  palcur. 
•  Nifi uedatagauejcarme thebanu Paridi Patomimo:non a, illealienocarmine  uelleruidcri 

do(a:us:fcdhocair  uroftedat  eum 


P  romifitquc  diem  tanta  dulcedme  captos 
A  fTicicilleanimos;tantaquelibidineuulgi 
A  uditur:fed  cum  f regie  i ubfcllia  uei  fu; 
E  furitintaflatn paridi nifiuendatagaucni; 
I  lie cc  militiae  multis  largitur  honorem: 
S  cmeftri  uatum  digitos  circunliga t  auro 
Quod  no  dat  proceres:  dabit  hiftrio.  tu  camciinos 
E  tbarcas;tu nobilium  magna  aciia  curas 
P  txiedios  pclopeia  fecitrphilomena  tnbuBos. 
H  audtameninuidiasuaa-qucm  pulpita palcunt 
Q  uisabimccenas?quisnunceritautpioculeius. 
A  utfabius;quiscottaicerum:quislentuJusalcer. 
T  unc  per  ingenio  predum:tunc  utile  multis 
P  allcre;ct  uinum  toto  nefcue  decern  bii. 
V  cfter porrolabor fecundior  hilloriarum 
S  criptores:petit  hie  plus  teporis  arque  olei  plus. 
N  amque  oblita  modis  miliefima  pagina  furgic 
O  mnibus.et crefcic multa  damnofa  papiro 
S  ic  ingens  reril  numerus  iubet;  atque  operil  lex; 
Qux  tamen  inde  feges  terra:  quis  f rudus  aperte? 
Q  uisdabithiftonco; quantum daretada  legeti. 
S  ed  genus  ignauilrquod  tedo  gaudctret  umbra 
D  ic  igitur  quid  caufidicis  ciuilia  prxftant 
O  fficia;et  magno  comites  in  f afe  libelli. 


Pandisgratise  fcruire:cui  fpe  mer/ 
cedisdatcarme&oem  tribuirope/ 
ram;huiusPandisapud  Mar,  eepi 
thaph;on  urbis  ddiiix  falefqj  Nili 
&c.  Alter  Paris  teporibus  Ncronis 
fait:que  ille  interfecit:  rang  eiufdc 
arnsa;mulum:erat  enim  hiftrio, 
b  Honorc  miliri^e.i.rnbunarum, 
c  Semeflri auro:na  rnbuni quoque 
annuluge{>abar:uroflcndit  PIu.Et 
nepos  in  epiftolis  pro  caluifio  ira  ro 
gar:Hunc  rogo  femeftri  tribunaru 
fpIendidiore&fibi&  auuculofuo 
facias. hinc  luiic.annulu  rnbuniciu 
femeRre  dixit,  d  Camerinos:  no/ 
bilestfcd  non  gratosprincip!:quaIis 
fuirSulpicius  camerinus :  q  depro 
conrul.itu  aphricac  accufatuseapd' 
Ncrone:fed  rameabfolutus:ut  cor/ 
nelius  (cnbif.  e  Bareas.i.  nobiles 
nongrarosprincipi:qualis  fuit  Ba 
rcas:Saranus  dequoanteae  di^iu. 
f  PeIopeia:opusdePeiopeiauxore 
Thyeftis.  g  Haud  ramc  inuidcas 
uatuhocex  ftomachoair  in  Papi, 
q  canes  &  rccitanscarmina  uidlum 
qu2Erebat:in  quo  ait  non  ee  ei  inui/ 
dendil:  nota's  illius  impudenria  6k 
turpequafftu,  b  Pafcunnna  Papi/ 
nius  accepir  pra^diu  a  Domitiano 
in  aIbano:qd  iadariAfl  ego  darda/ 
nia^:quis  fub  collibus  albsetRus  ^/ 
priu  iTiagniqueducismihi  muncre 
curresundadomi.  i  Fabius  Letu/ 
lusrdehtsantediflue.  k  Vinum 


toto  decebri:hoc  dicic  ^pter  fatur^ 
nalia'.quaf  mefcdecebri  celebraban 
turiMagna  liccntia  poculorum  .Papini'us  in  faturnalibus;Et  multograuidus  mcro  december. 
Senfusigirureft:utilefuifl"e  multis  uinoabftinuilTeeuam  eo tempore; quo  omncs  indulgent', 
ideft in  faturnalibus  toto  decembrindeft  toiis farurnalibus.Fidentinus port fabulas  fuas rande 
noftramrefertopinionenr.cuiinuifusaflentitur.  i  Oleiplust  ldeftmaiorem  lucubrationem 
undeorationes  Demofthenis  didae  Tunt  lucernam  o!ere:quoniam  nodu  ha:  erant  lucubrarx, 
■»  Sed genus  ignauum:proponit  obiedioncm  8i ei  refpondet:poncs inquit dicere  hiftoricos  ni 
hil  Iucrari:quoniam  non  prodeuntin  forum:&aguntnegocium:fcd  femper  in  umbra  funt, 
luuenalisucrooftedit  homines  eiufdem  inftituti  &!artis  non  plus  lucrarijfi  in  negociisuerfen 
turtquam  qui  in  umbra  fuerunrantiquorumtemporibus,  «  Caufidici  inquit:qui  exercet  elo 
quentiam  in  foro:centum  non  habent  tantum  diuiriarummt  omnia  corum  bona  poflint  com 

f>arari  etiam  cum  exiguo  rure  Artici  fati  equitis  romani:quem  ditilTimum  fuifle  fcribit  Corne 
iusnepos:eloquentem  teftatur  Cicero appellatum  fatumoftcndit  Suetonius  Ceciliusinquir: 
Epirota  Tufculi  narus  libertusiAttici  fati  equitis  romani:ad  quern  funt  Ciceronis  epiftolaeiqd' 
idem  deledatus  fit  otio:&  umbra  oftendit  Cicero  ad  cum  fcribens :  Te  inquit  otium  mc  ucro 

g 

A  Printer  at  Rome  (Rubens  of  Venice?),  1474 
Satires  of  Juvenal 

Larger  type,  16-point   .    .    .    Smaller  type,  lOJ-point 


Roman  edition  of  Satires  of  Juvenal 

The  facsimile  (plate  13)  on  the  preceding  page  is  fi'om  an 
edition  of  Juvenal's  Satires,  neatly  planned  and  carefully 
bound  in  tooled  red  leather,  but  it  is  without  the  specified 
name  of  printer  or  place  of  printing.  It  contains  the  printed 
date  of  1474,  and  in  a  paragraph  intended  as  a  substitute 
for  the  colophon  are  these  words;  "Editi  Romae."  Brunet 
(vol.  iii,  column  628)  states  that  this  is  the  folio  edition  with 
the  commentary  of  Oalderinus  which  incloses  the  text  on  three 
sides.  Deferring  to  Audiffredi,  Brunet  leans  to  the  belief 
that  this  edition,  although  published  at  Rome,  was  really 
printed  at  Venice,  and  probably  by  Jacob  Rubeus,  who  had 
issued  an  edition  of  which  this  is  a  fair  counterpart. 

Hain  catalogues  under  the  number  9690  a  resembling 
edition  of  Juvenal,  as  published  at  Rome,  but  hazards  no 
statement  about  the  printer.  A  Juvenal  of  Rome  is  credited 
to  Wendelinus  de  Wila,  who  is  registered  as  the  printer  of 
a  few  works. 

The  text  of  this  edition  is  in  a  Roman  type  on  16 -point 
body.  The  commentary  around  the  text  is  on  a  body  of  lOJ 
points.  An  alphabetical  letter  of  small  size  is  used  in  the 
text  over  the  low  or  round  letters  as  a  mark  of  reference. 
This  must  have  made  troublesome  work  for  the  compositor, 
for  it  compelled  the  cutting  down  of  the  upper  shoulder  of 
any  round  letter  so  treated.  I  have  never  seen  this  method 
imitated  by  any  other  Italian  printer.  It  does  show  the 
anxiety  of  the  printer  to  be  exact,  but  it  increased  the 
liability  to  error,  for  an  inserted  reference  mark  not  properly 
braced  was  liable  to  drop  out.  The  types  of  this  book  are 
compressed  but  clear,  and  they  show  the  thick  lines  and 
stubby  serifs  then  in  vogue.  The  fitting  up  of  the  matrices 
to  the  mold  seems  to  have  been  done  by  an  expert  founder, 
although  some  letters  are  out  of  line. 

64 


TYPES  OF  VENICE 


JOHN  AND  WENDELIN  OF  SPEYER 

On  the  IStli  day  of  September,  1469,  the  College  of  Venice 
granted  to  John  of  Speyer,  a  new-comer  and  recently  made 
citizen,  an  exclusive  privilege  of  five  years  for  printing  the 
Letters  of  Cicero  and  the  Natm-al  History  of  Pliny.  Little 
is  known  of  the  early  life  of  John  of  Speyer ;  but  the  patent 
recites  that  he  came  to  Venice  with  his  wife  and  family  to 
print  books  in  the  "  most  beautiful  form  of  lettering."  Speyer 
is  midway  between  Mainz  and  Strasburg,  the  two  reputed 
cradles  of  typography,  and  at  early  date  some  men  in  this 
city  should  have  had  a  knowledge  of  printing.  Santander 
says  there  is  evidence  that  printing  had  been  done  there 
before  1469.  John  of  Speyer  had  certainly  acquired  fair 
proficiency  in  printing  before  he  went  to  Venice. 

H  e  began  to  print,  not  as  a  novice  but  as  a  master  of  the 
art,  with  uncommon  activity.  In  less  than  one  year  (for  he 
died  in  1470),  he  and  his  brother  had  produced  the  Familiar 
Letters  of  Cicero,  the  Natural  History  of  Pliny,  the  first 
volume  of  the  Roman  History  of  Livy,  and  were  busy  upon 
St.  Augustine's  City  of  God.  Of  the  Familiar  Letters  and 
the  Natural  History  he  printed  one  hundred  copies  within 
three  months.  Of  the  second  edition  of  Familiar  Letters  he 
printed  six  hundred  copies  in  two  issues  of  three  hundred 
each,  within  four  months.  Work  was  then  in  progress  on 
the  Livy  and  on  St.  Augustine,  but  he  left  us  no  record  of 
the  number  of  copies. 

65 


Print  preferred  for  its  legibility 

The  illustration  annexed  is  the  facsimile  of  a  page  of  the 
Livy  which  was  printed  in  two  large  folio  volumes  in  1470. 
Its  type  was  cast  on  a  hody  a  trifle  larger  than  15 -point,  but 
it  appears  in  print  as  bolder  than  the  Roman  type  of  that 
body  made  by  other  printers.  It  has  mannerisms  that  even 
a  hasty  reader  will  note,  especially  in  the  sparsity  of  hair- 
lines and  of  serifs  at  the  ends  of  thick  strokes.  Its  general 
eflPect  is  that  of  the  style  of  type  now  known  in  America  as 
Old-style  Antique.  The  ruggedness  was  then  unusual.  Ital- 
ian writers  of  manuscripts  had  tried  to  make  letters  attrac- 
tive by  lightness  and  delicacy  of  stroke;  in  this  Livy  the 
letters  were  plainly  cut  on  the  punch  with  intent  to  make 
them  more  than  usually  thick  and  black  in  print.  The 
thick  lines  and  general  ruggedness  of  the  letters  were  not 
produced  entirely  by  these  designers  and  engravers.  Haste 
in  production  may  have  been  a  contributing  cause.  Punches 
rudely  struck  in  the  metal  for  matrices,  letters  hurriedly  cast, 
and  types  overinked  and  too  forcibly  impressed  on  over- 
dampened  paper  very  often  increased  the  desired  boldness 
beyond  the  intent  of  the  designer.  This  boldness  was  not 
caused  entirely  by  blunting  of  types  through  wear,  for  the 
presswork  of  the  second  volume  of  this  thick  book  shows 
types  not  inferior  in  clearness  to  those  of  the  first  volume. 
Their  even  lining  in  print  indicates  that  the  matrices  had 
been  fitted  up  by  an  expert. 

The  type  of  this  Livy  is  the  only  size  and  face  of  Roman 
made  by  John  of  Speyer,  but,  rugged  as  it  now  appears, 
it  was  attractive  to  the  book  buyers  of  its  time.  It  has 
merits  that  are  still  commended;  there  are  readers  now  who 
regard  it  as  little  inferior  to  the  types  of  Jenson  —  inferior 
by  reason  of  its  needless  boldness  and  ruggedness,  but  equally 
meritorious  in  its  roundness,  clearness,  and  easy  readability. 

66 


Plate  14 


HOS  SECVTI.M.GENVTIVSiETP. 
curatius  Cofules .  Fuit  anus  domi  forifcp  ifeflus.  Na 
anni  principio  ficdcconubio  Patrum  :ac  Plcbis.  C. 
Canulcius  Tnbunus  Plcbis  rogatione^mulgauit.q 
contaminari  fanguine  fuu  Pres  :cofun diqj  lura  getium 
rebantur .  Et  mentio  primo  fenfim  illata  a  Trrbunis 
utaltc:^  ex  Plebc  Cofulc  liccrfic  ficri:eo ^ceffit  deinde 
ut  rogatione  nouc  Tribuni^mulgarct:ut  populo  ptas 
efCdC'Xeu  de  Plcbcifcu  dc  Patribus  uelldC  Cofules  faciedi.  Id  ucrorfi  fierSC: 
non  uulgari  modo  cum  infimis:fed^rfas  auferri  a  primoribus  ad  Plebcm 
(umu  Impiu  credebat.  Lpti  ergo  audierc Patres : Ardcatiu  populu  ob  iniuria 
agri  abiudicati  dcfciflc :  8c  Veientes  depopulatos  extrema  agri  Romani.  &c 
Volfcos  Equofq)  ob  comunitam  Vcrrugine  fremere.adeo  uel  ifelix  bcllum 
ignom iniofp  paci  prpferebat.  His  itaqt  i  maius  etia  acceptis:  ut  iter  Arepttu 
tot  bello:yt  coticefcerent  acfliones  Tribunitip:dclcdlus  babcri:bellu  armac^  ui 
luma  apparari  iubct.fiquo  intetius  poCfit  ^-T.Quintio  Cofule  apparatu  fit. 
Tu.C. Canulcius  pauca  I  Senatu  uociferas  neqcg  territado  Cofules  ancrtcre 
plebe  a  cura  noua:^  legum:  Nuq  cos  fe  uiuo  dele(5tu  babituro8:antc  q  ea  qup 
promulgata  ab  ferCollegifq)  cfTcntrplebes  fciuiifdC :  &C  cofedihi  ad  cocioncm 
aduocauit.  Eode  tcpore  &  Cofules  Senatu  i  Tribunu:fiC  Tribunus  Populu 
{ Cofules-.icitabat.  Negabat  Cofules  ia  ultra  fcrri  poffc  furores  Tribunitios 
uentum  iam  ad  fine  eflfc.domi  plus  belli  cocitariiq  foris.id  adeo  no  Plebis  q 
Pat^itncq)  Tribunoy  magis:q  Cofulu  culpa  accidcrc.  cuius  rci  premiu  fit  in 
ciuitate  t  ca  maximis  fempcr aucJlibus  crefcerc.fic  pace  bonos  :  fic bello  fieri. 
Maximu  Rom^  premiu  Icditionu  ce.td  6C  fingulis:uniuerfif(j  fcmp  bonori 
fuiflfc.Rcminifccrct'qua  maicf^ateScnatuf  ipii  a  pribuf  accepillet.qm  liberis 
tradituri  cflTcnt.  ut  qucadmodii  Plcbsrgloriari  pofliBC  audtiorciaphoreq?  cflc. 
Fine  ergo  no  fieri:nec  futu^:donec  q  felices  feditiones  :ta  bonorati  feditionii 
auAores  effent.quas  qntafq;  res.C.Canulein  aggreHumTColluuione  gcntiu: 
perturbatione  aufpicio^  publico^stpriuatoruc^  affcrre:ne  qd  fincen:ne  quid 
incotaminati  fit:ut  difcrimine  omni  fublato:nec  fe  qfquat  nec  fuos  nouerit, 
Quam  cnim  alia  uim  conubia^mifcua  babcrcmifi  ut  feray^pc  ritu:  uulgef 
cocubitus  Plebis  patrumq):ut  q  natus  fit:ignor8Cfcuius  (anguinis:  quorum 
facroy  fit:dimidius  Pat:^  fit.dimidius  Plebis/nc  fccu  qdc  ipfc  cocors.  Patijc 
id  uideri:quod  oia  diuina:buana(^  turbet'.Iam  ad  Cofulatu  uulgi  turbatores 
accingi.fic  primo  ut  alter  Coful  ex  Plcbe  fierfic :  id  modo  fermoibus  tetalTe. 
Nuc  rogari:ut  feu  ex  Patribus:feu  ex  Plcbe  uclit  Populus  Confulcs  creet.fiC 
creaturos  baud  dubic  ex  Plcbe  fcditiofiflfimii  qucqj .  Canuleios  igit  Iciliofqi 
Confulcs  fore.ne  id  lupiter  optimus  maximus  firicr& :  Regiac  maieflatis 
Imperium  eo  rcciderc.&  fe  milies  morituros  porius;  q  ut  tantum  dcdecoris 
admitti  patiant'.ccrtu  babcre:  maiores  qooqi  fi  diuinalTent  concededo  omnia 
no  mitiore  in  fe  Plcbcm;fcd  afpiorctalia  ex  aliis  iniqora  poftulado :  cu  prima 
impetrair^  futuram:primo  qualibfic  dimicationem  fubituros  fuiflfc  potiusr 
5  eas  leges  fibi  imponi  patercnt".  quia  turn  conccCTum  fit  dc  Tribunis:  item 
conccHlim  efTe.fme  non  fieri  pofTe:!  cade  duitate Tribunos  Plebis:  6C  Prcs 
.aut  hue  ordineraut  illu  ^agi(lratum  toUedum  crTcpotiufqi  fero:  q  niiq 
obuia  eundu  audacip:temcritati9.illi  ne  ut  impune  primo  difcordias  feretes 
cocitet  fmitima  bclla;demdc  aducrfus  ea  quf  concitauermt:  armari  ciuiutem 


Jolin  and  Wendelin  of  Speyer.    Venice,  1470 
Livy:  Decades 

15-point 


WENDELIN  OF  SPEYER 


The  early  death  of  John  of  Speyer  annulled  the  privileges 
granted  to  him  by  the  authorities  of  Venice,  but  his  brother 
Wendelin,  who  had  been  associated  with  him  from  the 
beginning,  took  up  his  unfinished  work.  He  completed 
the  four  books  then  in  press  and  matm*ed  grand  plans  for 
an  enlargement  of  the  business.  To  carry  out  these  plans 
he  admitted  to  a  partnership  John  of  Cologne  and  John 
Manthen,  whose  names  appear  in  many  following  imprints 
of  new  books.  They  enlisted  in  service  eminent  scholars  as 
correctors  of  the  press,  and  published  many  editions  of  the 
classics  that  are  now  famous.  Nearly  fifty  dated  and  several 
undated  works,  largely  scholastic,  mainly  in  folio  or  large 
quarto,  are  recorded  as  their  work  between  1470  and  1473. 

Then  came  a  halt.  It  is  probable  that  Wendelin  was 
visionary,  or  unfit  to  be  a  manager  or  financier,  and  that 
John  of  Cologne  and  John  Manthen,  who  had  valid  claims 
as  partners,  desired  more  control  of  the  mechanics  of  printing 
as  well  as  of  its  finance.  There  is  no  record  of  mortgage 
or  suit  at  law,  but  the  types  and  material  of  the  partnership 
after  1473  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  recently  made  part- 
ners, who  managed  their  business  with  zeal  and  intelligence, 
for  they  added  largely  to  the  old  stock  of  types.  Proctor 
identifies  seventeen  faces  of  type  used  by  the  remaining 
partners.  Within  the  years  1474  and  1480  they  produced 
numerous  works.  It  does  not  appear,  however,  that  the 
business  was  profitable,  for  their  work  then  ceased  and  they 
left  no  successor  of  marked  merit.  The  disappointment  of 
the  Speyer  brothers  and  of  their  seceding  business  partners 

68 


Small  Roman  type  first  made  unsatisfactory 

seems  to  have  been  caused  by  the  same  error  of  judgment 
that  produced  the  failure  of  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  at 
Rome.  They  had  catered  too  submissively  to  the  tastes  of 
the  wealthy  and  luxurious.  Their  books  were  too  big,  high 
in  price,  and  unavoidably  slow  of  sale.  The  book  buyer  of 
small  income  needed  and  insisted  on  books  of  smaller  size 
and  at  lower  price. 

Wendelin  of  Speyer,  who,  in  1475,  began  afresh  as  printer 
and  publisher,  this  time  without  partners,  undertook  to  meet 
the  demand  for  the  smaller  book.  It  was  not  then  an  easy 
task  to  print  compactly  in  Roman  type.  It  seemed  necessary 
to  make  some  serious  change  in  the  accepted  form.  Round 
and  low  letters  had  to  be  made  a  little  taller,  ascenders  and 
descenders  had  to  be  shortened,  broad  characters  visibly 
condensed,  and  abbreviations  lavishly  employed.  By  no 
other  method  did  it  seem  practicable  that  the  text  of  a  folio 
in  type  of  16 -point  body  could  be  crowded  in  a  small  quarto 
with  type  of  12 -point  body.  It  was  believed  that  these 
changes,  with  the  customary  thin  spacing  of  words  and  the 
provision  of  two  columns  to  the  page,  would  compress  the 
matter  of  a  bulky  book  within  handy  dimensions.  The  book 
selected  for  this  experiment  was  the  Commentary  of  Dr. 
John  Scott  on  the  Four  Books  of  Sentences,  which  was  pub- 
lished in  1475.  A  facsimile  of  the  last  page  appears  as 
plate  1 5  on  a  following  leaf.  The  new  book  was  an  unfortu- 
nate venture.  The  names  of  the  designer  of  the  type  and  its 
type-founder  are  unknown,  but  Wendelin  has  to  bear  the 
discredit.  It  may  be  assumed  that  Wendelin,  planning  to 
establish  a  new  printing  house  with  little  delay,  or  to  meet 
the  threatened  competition  of  an  announced  work  by  a 
rival  publisher,  was  induced  to  make  use  of  this  imperfect 
type  and  composition.    The  critical  reader  cannot  repress 

69 


Wendelin  unsuccessful  as  a  maker  of  books 

astonishment  that  this  uncouth  type  could  have  been  made 
for  and  published  by  the  surviving  partner  of  the  house 
that  had  printed  grand  editions  of  Livy  and  Pliny. 

This  edition  of  the  Commentary  of  Dr.  John  Scott  appeared 
in  double  columns  in  the  form  of  a  quarto  of  more  than 
three  hundred  printed  leaves  inclosed  in  stout  boards  of 
wood  and  secured  with  four  clasps  of  riveted  leather;  its 
broad  back,  three  inches  thick,  was  protected  by  a  wide  band 
of  leather,  stamped  in  the  fashion  of  the  Venetian  bookbinders 
of  that  time.  Its  paper  is  white,  strong,  and  firm.  The  press- 
work  is  uneven;  some  types  are  overcolored  and  inky,  but 
more  are  pale  and  clean. 

The  book  has  no  title-page,  running  title,  or  even  Roman 
numerals  for  paging,  but  an  index  of  twenty- two  pages  in 
front  is  replete  with  Arabic  figures. 

Many  devices  to  compact  composition  are  here  apparent: 
capital  letters,  sparingly  used  for  proper  names,  are  some- 
times omitted  at  the  beginning  of  sentences;  hyphens  are 
not  used  for  broken  words;  superiors,  or  small  letters  above 
the  line,  appear  on  every  page.  Annotations  with  pen  are 
frequent,  probably  made  by  an  early  buyer  of  the  book. 

This  experiment  with  a  smaller  size  of  type  for  a  cheap 
book,  judicious  as  it  promised  to  be,^  proved  a  complete  failure, 
probably  by  reason  of  haste  and  scamped  workmanship.  The 
clumsy  type  did  not  appear  again  in  any  other  book.  Wen- 
delin soon  returned  to  the  older  practice  of  printing  books  of 
merit  in  large  form,  of  which  he  made  a  few  before  1478,  when 
he  finally  abandoned  printing.  His  last  book,  the  Divine 
Comedy  of  Dante,  was  not  in  Roman  letter,  but  in  a  style 
of  type  described  by  Proctor  as  Italian  Gothic. 

'  It  may  seem  ungracious  to  point  out  the  Deference  is  unwisely  paid  to  types  that  are 
occasional  shortcomings  of  early  masters  of  merely  old,  regardless  of  their  inerit  or  of 
the  art,  but  some  comment  is  unavoidable.     their  acceptability  to  the  reader. 

70 


Plate  15 


sol  liflifti'tis  defigaaf de  Me  <^auid 
a  fait  dc  bcthlap  cxitij  c£flitat1  eter 
03  n«ioitas  dcf ignat  p'que  f|?  I  patre 
oafcit fpnat9,e.8j  qd  in  ^Higi.t  ad 
Ifaj  ct  xpo.p^  qi  uW  003  hlm^  daator 
chal'""  tueffias;  j5  ^acWrfe 
exulta  f  atis  filia  fiotii  lubila  fil«  fcrf  m 
cccc  rex  tu9  ueaiet  tibi  iuflds  &  falua 
tor.cccc  xpi  deltas  ip  pauper  ftf  afce 
desfup  afi'na.'Ccce  ci9  haaaicaSi^iD.au 
£bre!  ludco^i  illz  auctis  no  p5t  cxpoi 
fi  dtf  mcQ[ia  ad.lf aj.  5'  f»bat  Oc 
gen.xlix.no  aufert  fccpt^i  de  lud«  8^ 
diw  de  feruoJ-e  ci9  donccjooiat  g  mittc 
d?  eQ.5i  ip:  eric  expcai''  gltjuj  mo 
fublata  e  reg°  &  diiatio  iudcts  a  tej^fi 
ficrodis  afcoloite.fBl  oat?  c  (fis.g  ab 
illo  t^c  uenit  spSiticc  oalj  qd  dicut  <^ 
iflaau^tjs  iatellfgic  de  oabucho?'"re 
ge  q  ccpi'tregern  fcdechia.  &  populii 
duxit  capti">bibtlonia.  Si  tac  defe 
did  reg"  fedcchie.^  ip:  f  uit  ccc9  &  /i 
li'i  ciTiDortui.frm  e.9  rcdeutepopulo 
de  capti*<  habucrut  duces  8i  pricfpcs 
d:  ^orobab:!  efdra  nemi'a.Si  macfia 
b^is.^abuerc  ed  rcges«f.ioIiane  Iiirca" 
fi"  fiiiionis  raadiabei.qct  aut  iDtdligi 
tur  de  xpo.p^qj  chal'"'  uctuflashjqn 
ucniat  raeffias  ubi  nos  hem?  g  mftted? 
efl.  p  danief  ix^ia^t.aogtlus  ad  da 
nicle  doces  eo  de  tpc  aiucnc?  xpi  facx? 
dadomades  abbrcuiate  Cut  fup  popujij 
guu  5C  fup  urbem'tuai  fanita  ut  coffl 
inef  puaricfl?.8i  fiocra  accipiat  pittii 
delcat  iniqtas  8i  adducat  uifli^  fepit 
oa.oi  ungat  fcps  fc6|?.  ^  i  fac  fcri^tu 


fTdjdomoda  dupfr  nccipif»uoo  too^ 
e^e.7«dic9«.8i  fie  accipit  c5it.  i?*  p 
tpe.7,aimo52:Si  fic  accipit  leuitj»2f 
numerab(t.7.'ebdoracdas„jnnom^.f  n 
pot  iotelligi  de  ebdomida  p  moi^^tiic 
pphetia  fuid^'DpIcta  io^anooj  &i  dimi 
dio.g  2?  m5.  toto  aut  tpfis  illud  ptcrl 
tij  &caplccu  fuit  ia  medio  ultie  ebdo 
msdij;  p  danielts  2?,aabucho"  ui 
dit  Oatuy  magna  ct»i?  caput  ex  auro 
pcit?  8{Bchi3  de  argeto'.pe'ter.de  ere* 
tfijie  de  ferr'o.abf cif^*  e  lapis  de  moQtc 
(im  fnamV.SJ  pcuffttflacuai  pedi^^j 
6f  diDtttit  ea.p  qua  defigtiSf  .^.mag* 
rcg<  fibi  fuccedetia^p"'  fuit  reg"  chal 
deo3?.2"  i  tcgou  piaw.qtt  fubiecit  (i 
bi  reg"  chaldeopi,?"  rcg""  greco?!  qi 
fubiecit  f  ibi  reg"  pfa^^.f^."  rcgau  ra 
Buanogj  qd  fobiec it  fibi  rcgnu  grecoJC 
6i  oia  reg^  mudi.io  de  fcrro'qd  dofuat 
oin  metalla  .lapis  aiit  fuit  xps.cui  fbj  e 
f  egnu  romano54  .qd:  ipletii  e  toe  cofli 
titii  8C  f  ilueOri  pape.  tunc  ar9  ille  cui 
f  ec  debebat  reg"  fomanoji  i  sps  i 
dcfco  tpeoftatini  rcg"  romano^i  fait 
fubieaii'^  xps  omkt  Ad  ar"  iQ  op 
po"  d?*q)  Jiuti  Ifati  81  j^idiai  iudcos 
pcepunt  i  tpe  xpi  .p^  de  nataoTiclcni 
cho"?  di  gamacle.uii  Io*dc  pricipib? 
njf  ti  crediderut  in  eo,  §  g>  pMcoi 
o  Df  itebmt  nc  extra  finagogaj  f  icrefi 

ExpKciat.q.To.  Scot/.fup  gtuor  U 
bris  foiaru?  nie",8e  de  aia.SCqdlibetj 
eiafde.impfic'i?  Mgria  Vcnddiau  dc 
Spirj.  Lausdio 


Wendelin  of  Speyer.    Venice,  1475 
Commentary  of  John  Duns  Scotus  on  the  Four  Books  ot  Sentences 
12-point 


NICOLAS  JENSON 


Venice,  in  1470,  offered  many  inducements  to  printers.  It 
had  large  libraries  and  educated  and  wealthy  book  collectors ; 
it  was  the  largest  market  in  Europe  for  the  sale  of  manu- 
scripts; it  offered  facilities  for  cheap  transportation  by  sea; 
artists  and  mechanics  were  numerous  and  of  unusual  ability ; 
paper  was  cheap  and  excellent.  Appreciating  its  advan- 
tages, Nicolas  Jenson  of  France  went  to  Venice  in  1470 
and  became  a  competitor  of  the  Speyer  brothers.  He  had 
served  apprenticeship  in  the  mint  of  Paris,  afterward  became 
master  of  the  mint  in  Tours,  and  was  well  qualified  to  super- 
intend fine  workmanship  in  metal.  There  is  a  legend  that 
Charles  VII,  then  king  of  France,  sent  him  to  Mainz  in  1458 
to  acquire  a  knowledge  of  typography,  and  that  the  death  of 
the  king  at  his  return  in  1461  prevented  his  earlier  practice 
in  Paris  of  the  new  art.  Madden  discredits  the  legend,  and 
intimates  that  he  obtained  his  knowledge  of  printing  in  a 
monastery  at  Cologne;  but  the  evidence  of  this  tutelage  is 
not  entirely  satisfactory.  It  is  probable  that  Jenson  brought 
his  model  types  to  Venice;  they  are  designed  and  engraved 
with  too  much  care  for  hasty  work.  He  settled  there  in 
1470  and  soon  began  to  print  with  diligence. 

Controversy  exists  concerning  the  title  of  his  first  book, 
but  there  is  now  general  agreement  that  its  true  date  is  1470. 
A  little  book  entitled  Decor  Puellarum  declares  in  its  colo- 
phon that  it  was  printed  at  Venice  by  Nicolas  Jenson  in  the 
year  1461.  The  type  is  that  of  Jenson  but  the  date  is 
doubted.  There  is  reason  to  believe  that  one  Roman  nu- 
meral, X,  has  been  dropped  from  the  types  of  the  date,  which 
should  read  1471.     No  other  book  of  Jenson  produced 

72 


Plate  16 

rogo  ignofcarismihiifi  logius  fumeuccJhis.frcqucntifri'ma  prseparatio 
cum  pluribus  ueibis:uel  quarefadhin  quidfimusiuelquarefecenmus 
did  folct.  Verho^  quoq;  uis  ac  prophetas  cdfirmatur  uel  prxfupaonc: 
qq  ilia  non  poenatfcd  ^hibitio  fcclcns  fait :  aut  feprchenfione.Ciues 
inqfi  hoccosappellari  noiefas  cft,AfFert  aliquafideuentaus:&:  dubi' 
tario  cum  fimulamus  quxrcrcnosudcfapicndum:  ubi  definendum: 
qd  potifli'mum  diccndu:an  of  no  dicendu  fit:cuiufmodiexeplis  plena 
funt  omfa:fcd  unum  interim  fuffidt.Equidc  quod  ad  mcattinec:quo 
meuertam  nefdo:  negem  fuiffc  infamiam  iudidi  corrupti:  6C  cxtera. 
Hoc  etiam  i  prsEteritum  ualct*  Namct  dubitaflc  nos  fingimus:  a  quo 
fchematc  non  procul  abeft  illa  quse  didtur  cdmunicatiorcu  apud  ipds 
aduerfarios  cofuliustutDomitius  Aferpro  Qoatilla,Atillanerat*:tre/ 
pidat:quid  liceat  foeminsetquid  cdiugc  deceatiforte  uos  in  illa  folirudie 
obuios  cafus  mi  ferae  mulieri  optulit.tu  fratermos  patemi  amiciiquod 
cofilium  daas:aut  cum  iudiabus  quafi  deliberamus:quod  eft  freque^ 
riffimum.  Quid  fuadetis:&  uos  interrogo:  quid  tande fieri, oporaiit.'' 
ut  Cato.Caxlo  fi  uos  in  eo  loco  efTetisiquid  aliud  fedffctis.  &  alibi  cO'' 
munem  rem  agi  putatoterac  uos  huic  rei  prsepofitos  efre:red  nonuq 
cdmunicates  aliquid  I'expetftatu  fubiungimus:  quod  6c  per  fe  fchema 
cftrut  in  Verrem  Cicero.Quid  deinde:quid  ccnferisr'fiirtum  fortalTef' 
aut  pracdam  aliquamr'Ddnde  cum  diu  fufpendifTet  iudicum  animos 
fubiedt:quod  multo  efTet  fprobius  ,Hoc  Celfus  fubftentationc  uocar: 
Eft  aute  duplex.Na  cotra  frequenter  cum  expecflationc  grauiflVmo^i 
fecimus.ad  aliquid  quod  fitleueraut  nullo  modo  crimmofutdefccdi-' 
mus.Sed  quia  non  tantum  per  cofcationem  fieri  folet  -^of^^b^PAalit 
nominauerunt  ideft  inopinatum.  Illis  non  accedo:  qui  fchema  efle 
exiftimant:eriam  fiquid  nobis  ipfis  dicamus  inexpe<flatum  acddiffe: 
ut  Pollio:  nunq  fotc  credidi  iudicesi  ut  reo  Scauro  nequid  in  eius 
iudido  gratia  uaJcretrprecarer.Eft  penc  idefons  illius:  qua  pmiffionc 
uocanttqui  comunicationis  cum  aliqua  ipfis  iudiabus  relinquimus 
cxiftimada:aliqua  nonnuq:  aduerfariis  quoque:  ut  Caluus  Vatinio': 
perfrica  frontem:  6c  die  te  digniorem:  qui  prsEtot^ficres:  q  Catonem* 
Qux  uero  funt  augendis  affedibus  accdmodatae  figurae.cdftant  maxfc 
fimulatione.Nanqj  5C  irafd  nos  6c  gaudere  6C  timerc  &  admirari  &  do^ 
Icre  6C  indignan  6C  optare:quax|j  his  funt  fimilia  fingimus.  Inde  funt 
illadiberatus  fum:refpiraui:&bene  habct:&  quse  amentia  eft  hacC'Ec  o 
temporaio  mores  tomiferum  me.cdfumptisenf  lachrymisn'fixus  tame 
pecftoris  hsErctvdolorrSC  magna:  nunc  hifdtcterrae.  Quod  exclamatione 
quidam  uocant:  ponuntqj  inter  figuras  orationfs.Hxcquotiens  uera 

Nicolas  Jenson.    Venice,  1471 
Quintllianus :  Institutiones  Oratoriee 

16-point 


JmsorCs  merit  as  a  designer  of  type 

between  1461  and  1470  is  known,  and  it  may  be  assumed 
tbat  his  press  was  not  idle  for  nine  years  before  be  began 
work  in  earnest  as  a  printer  at  Venice,  and  that  he  planned 
books  that  are  now  lost  or  unknown.  Although  John  of 
Speyer  clearly  had  earned  an  enviable  reputation,  Nicolas 
Jenson  is  now  generally  regarded  as  most  deserving  of  early 
Italian  printers/ 

The  type  that  earned  him  distinction  was  planned  for  a 
body  of  about  1 6  points,  and  he  never  made  any  other  face 
of  Roman,  but  in  1475  he  was  induced  to  cut  and  cast  for  cheap 
books  of  devotion  smaller  sizes  of  Gothic  letter.  His  repu- 
tation as  a  designer  of  letters  is  based  on  the  type  here  shown 
in  the  facsimile  of  a  page  of  his  edition  of  Quintilian 
(plate  16).  It  is  not  so  bold,  but  is  more  neatly  engraved  and 
carefully  founded  than  the  type  of  John  of  Speyer.  Its  great 
merit  is  not  so  much  in  the  design  of  individual  letters  as  in 
the  perfect  accord  and  general  symmetry  of  all  characters 
when  they  have  been  combined  in  a  page.  To  use  an  artist's 
phrase,  they  hang  together.  Neither  in  capitals  nor  lower- 
case does  any  one  character  dominate  or  belittle  another.^ 

The  edition  of  Quintilian  from  which  plate  16  has  been 
facsimiled  has  a  note  by  its  editor  and  corrector,  Omnibonus 

'Nicolas  Jenson  is  one  of  the  most  cele-  will  be  in  all  features  its  proper  mate."  How 

brated  artists  on  the  honor  roll  of  typog-  much  more  difficult  was  it  for  a  designer  to 

raphy.    His  types  are  of  great  beauty  and  make  two  complete  series  of  capitals  and 

his  impressions  are  true  masterpieces.    The  lower-case  with  abbreviations  and  points, 

style  of  letter  he  devised  is  the  one  we  are  and  adjust  every  one  so  that  all  should  be 

using,  if  we  submit  to  some  trivial  changes  pleasing  in  every  combination  ! 

introduced  by  fashions  which  did  not  disturb  Brown,  in  a  note  on  page  17  of  his  Vene- 

its  general  effect.    Bernard,  vol.  ii,  p.  192.  tian  Printing  Press,  specifies  differences  in 

This  claim  for  superiority  is  generally  ad-  the  structure  of  letters  made  by  Jenson  and 

mitted.     William  Morris  is  said  to  have  by  John  of  Speyer ;  but  the  general  effect  of 

accepted  the  Jenson  style  of  Roman  as  the  the  printing  produced  by  these  printers  was 

model  for  his  Golden  Type.  not  caused  by  small  differences  in  structure. 

correspondent  writes:   "I  can  easily  Jenson  had  instinctively  a  nicer  sense  of  the 

make  a  drawing  for  one  letter  in  a  satis-  exact  harmony  that  shoulil  appear  in  types, 

factory  manner,  but  I  find  it  difficult  to  and  was  more  intent  on  their  legibility  than 

make  a  second  letter  of  the  alphabet  that  on  their  conformity  to  a  standard. 

74 


Active  as  printer,  but  not  as  type-maker 

Leonicenus,  in  which  he  gives  credit  to  Nicolas  Jenson  as 
the  inventor  of  printing.  This  untrue  statement  could  not 
have  been  inserted  in  the  book  without  the  knowledge  of 
Jenson,  who  in  some  other  books  has  allowed  himself  to 
be  described  with  undeserved  praise. 

Jensen's  Roman  types  do  not  appear  in  all  of  his  books 
with  the  full  effectiveness  that  should  have  been  produced  by 
his  superior  designing  and  engraving.  In  many  books  the 
press  work  is  pale  or  "under  color,"  as  printers  describe  this 
treatment,  deficient  in  ink  and  impression.  It  may  be  that 
Jenson  ordered  this  under- coloring  to  produce  what  he  be- 
lieved would  be  a  closer  imitation  of  the  lightness  and  delicacy 
then  practised  by  copyists  and  generally  admired  by  the 
collectors.  He  seemingly  intended  to  enforce  at  first  glance 
the  great  difference  between  the  openness  of  Roman  and 
the  somberness  of  Black-letter. 

Light-faced  Roman  type  had  some  disadvantages.  To 
secure  the  needed  openness  types  had  to  be  designed  of  large 
size  and  of  full  rounded  form,  with  abundant  relief  of  white 
space  within  each  letter,  as  well  as  between  composed  lines 
and  in  the  margin.  Without  this  proper  relief  of  white  the 
types  would  be  huddled  and  ineffective.  Large  types  com- 
pelled a  making  of  large  books,  unavoidably  of  larger  price. 
The  ordinary  book  buyer,  accustomed  from  childhood  to  the 
compactness  and  boldness  of  Black-letter  in  school-books  and 
manuals  of  devotion  of  small  size,  was  not  entirely  content 
with  large  books  and  pale  print.  The  needs  of  these  book 
buyers  compelled  Jenson  to  cut  and  cast  smaller  types  of 
Black-letter  face,  that  were  as  meritorious  as  the  types  of 
the  Quintilian.  There  is  no  record  of  his  attempt  at  the 
making  of  a  Roman  type  on  a  small  body.  It  is  not  credible 
that  he  had  any  share  in  the  12 -point  Roman  of  Wendelin. 

75 


Jenson  had  many  associates  in  business 
The  facsimile  (plate  17)  that  follows  is  a  page  from  an 
edition  of  John  Duns  (Scotus)  on  the  Third  Book  of  Sentences, 
"printed  at  Venice  in  1481  by  John  of  Cologne,  Nicolai 
ien^on,  and  their  associates."  The  type  of  the  text  is  a 
Black-letter  on  10-point  body  that  may  be  accepted  as  a 
design  approved  by  Jenson  even  if  all  pmiches  were  not  cut 
by  his  own  hand.  The  presswork  of  this  book  shows  vigor- 
ous blackness  of  ink  with  a  sharpness  and  clearness  of  out- 
line in  every  type  that  is  in  strong  contrast  with  the  paler 
presswork  of  the  Quintilian.  It  leads  a  student  to  the  con- 
clusion that  Jenson  purposely  made  his  Roman  types  too 
pale  and  his  Black-letter  overblack,  for  the  books  so  treated 
proved  much  more  acceptable  to  the  buyers  of  his  time. 

Jenson's  period  of  activity  was  between  the  years  1470 
and  1480.  Sardini  says  that  in  ten  years  he  and  associate 
partners  produced  one  hundred  and  fifty-five  books  that  have 
been  identified  and  described  by  librarians.  His  editions 
were  large,  but  he  never  specified  the  number  of  copies. 

Jenson  had  many  partners  and  allies,  and  he  seems  to  have 
maintained  friendly  terms  with  all.  John  of  Cologne  and 
John  Manthen  are  conspicuous.  Their  articles  of  partner- 
ship are  not  known,  but  the  mutual  business  relations  seem 
strange  to  modern  usage.  John  of  Cologne  was  the  successor 
in  1474  to  the  business  of  Wendelin  of  Speyer,  and  John 
Manthen  was  John  of  Cologne's  partner  until  1480,  dm-ing 
which  period  they  printed  many  works,  but  within  the  years 
1470-1480  Jenson  was  active  as  a  rival  printer  and  publisher. 

The  colophon  of  a  book  of  1480  recites  that  it  was  printed 
by  John  of  Cologne,  Nicolas  Jenson,  and  associates.  The 
precedence  of  John  of  Cologne  warrants  the  inference  that 
he  was  the  senior  partner  with  the  larger  interest;  but  in 
a  book  dated  1481,  one  year  after  Jenson's  death  (plate  17), 

76 


Plate  17 


do.tp  litcjc  noua  ;>tirtcatoU  mozslia  q 
lejc  vetu8. 7  addat  alia  ucl  faltc  addat  ft' 
li'qua  cxplicaconcm  aliquo:um  ad  qua 
hue  ipfi  no  (cnebanf  q'  quantu  ad  hoc 
eft  grauio:.tn  boc  n  tm  grauat  fioit  cj: 
alia  pre  grauat  cerlontalms  muUttudo 
^  iudicialm.  pte  aut  Icgts  noue  plus 
flUcuiatmulmudo  7  effi'cacia  au):iUo^ 
I'ta  cp  lUa  ttiodica  grauitae  ft  qua  fit  ma 
ioi  in  mojalibue  no  pponderat  graui'ra 
ti  in  alqe.i  boc  penfatia  aujrilqe  bic  m. 
([3ld  2'"  oico  q?  oiflFicultas  m  ope  virtu 
ofo  no  eit  p  fc  ex  pte  opantierfed  ejc  pre 
opis.oi'fRdUue  eni'm  e  auaro  oare  vnH 
cp  Uberali  oece5. 7  tn  no  vi'rtuoftug.ncc 
qualifcunc^  oifficulrajejrpte  opis  arga 
it  maioze  virtuofitate.  ^cd  ilia  que  per 
fc  includic  c)CC£llen«'a5  obiecti  :q6  per  k 
atringi'f  p  opatocm.ralieautc  oifRcrtas 
ftat  cum  maioti  kuitatc.  "^am  Icui'  eft 
atringcre  amando  obicrtit  ejrccllmtiua 
cp  obtectu  minus  ejccellene  i  talia  ope 
ra  ejcccllcntia  I'mediate  refpicicnn'a  oeiJ 
plura  funt  Cjcplicira  ilcge  nouaZPultt 
cnim  actus  oilcctois  oet  immediate  ma 
gis  ejcplicantur  cbziflianiey  iudcie.nec 
mirum  quia  ilia  oicitur  em  Icjc  timozij 
bee  aiif  amozis.amo:  aure}  1  pripue  fi 
nis  fi  ille  queraf  in  omnibufifacit  om^ 
onera  Ieuia:ut  ueru  fit  q6  oi^it  faluato 
2Patb.20.dlenitead  me.flt  fcquitur. 
j[ugumem'mmeiifuaueeft:'Zonus  me 
urn  leue.  4ui  fir  lauf  bonot  7  glojia  per 
Infinita  feculomm  fecula,  (j[JBmm.___ 


fmPteffum  venetns  ad  etpefaa  levnm 


ifi[rplidticr{ptu5  fupcr  tcrtio  fententi'a' 
rumedtfgfti  a  fran'e  ioahne  punstozdi 
nisfratrum  mi'op  poctozefubtilif^jrmr' 
'^coiTThTumjbe<Mo^^  l^cr" 
^EceHentilTimum  la'cre  tBeotoffle  oocto 
7em  magiftrum  Xboma5  pmRetbaS^ 
gTicu  ozdinie  fratru  beremitarii  fancri 
-^ugiillinin'n  l^rmotilftmQiludkojga;  ~ 
taumo  o;dinarie  leflentenunayunacil^ 
"flil^auiaanm^^u       '  " 

Jolm  of  Colog-ne  and  Nicolas  Jenson.  Venice,  1481 
John  Duns  Scotus  on  the  Third  Book  of  Sentences 


lO-point 


Jenson^s  high  reputation  as  a  printer 

though  the  imprint  appears  as  "John  of  Cologne,  Mcolai 
ien^on,  and  their  associates,"  at  this  time  the  business  was 
managed  by  John  of  Selingenstadt,  near  Mainz  (also  known 
as  John  Herbort),  who  had  some  previous  experience  as  a 
master  printer  at  Padua  in  1475.  It  is  probable  that  John 
of  Cologne  and  John  Manthen  were  most  efficient  in  the  part- 
nership as  booksellers  or  financiers.  When  Jenson  died,  John 
of  Selingenstadt  began  alone  in  Venice  as  a  master  printer 
in  1481,  printing  largely  but  independently  for  John  of 
Cologne  &  Co.    His  work  ended  in  1484. 

The  merits  of  Jenson  as  a  designer  of  type,  and  of  his 
printing  house  as  a  maker  of  books,  were  loyally  proclaimed 
by  his  successors.  Torresano  says  of  a  book  printed  by  him 
in  1481  that  it  was  in  the  famous  types  of  Jenson,  than 
whom  there  is  no  better  artist.  John  of  Cologne  said  that 
the  Jenson  types  were  sublime  reproductions  of  letters.  John 
Herbort  said  that  the  Jenson  type  was  the  most  charming 
letter.  Other  printers  were  equally  outspoken  in  praise. 
Chevalon  said  that  the  Jenson  faces  were  most  admirable 
forms  of  type.  Prevost  said  they  were  in  the  most  beauti- 
ful style.  The  Jenson  types  had  a  wide  reputation  before 
the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century.  Printers  in  Flanders  and 
Theodore  Rood  of  Oxford  commended  books  printed  by  them 
as  in  the  genuine  Venetian  characters. 

Pope  Sixtus  IV  invited  Jenson  to  Rome  and  conferred  on 
him  the  honor  of  Count  Palatine.  He  accumulated  money 
with  fame  and  died  September  7,  1480,  rated  a  wealthy 
man.  By  his  wiU  he  provided  for  his  four  children  with 
their  mother,  and  made  bequests  to  fi-iends.  The  provi- 
sions of  his  will  concerning  his  punches,  which  were  not  then 
held  by  John  of  Cologne,  had  been  executed  in  1481. 


78 


ANDREW  TORRESANO 


It  is  not  probable  that  Torresano  received  practical  training 
in  tbe  mecbanics  of  typograpby,  but  it  is  certain  tbat  be  was 
interested  as  a  partner  in  book-making  witb  tbe  printer 
de  Blauis  in  1480,  and  tbat  be  then  or  soon  after  bought 
types  or  matrices  of  Jenson.  Torresano's  name  appears  for 
the  first  time  in  tbe  colophon  of  a  book  dated  1481,  but  in 
association  with  tbe  printers  de  Blauis  and  de  Paterbonis.  His 
imprints  indicate  that  be  had  no  partners  in  1486,  but  he 
was  then  active  as  a  publisher.  Before  the  close  of  the  cen- 
tury he  and  his  partners  issued  nearly  one  hundred  books, 
largely  on  ecclesiastical  subjects.  Although  he  bad  a  greater 
interest  in  publishing,  he  must  have  given  unusually  close 
supervision  to  the  making  of  types,  for  Proctor  identifies 
twenty-two  distinct  faces  of  type  in  books  that  bear  his  imprint. 
His  sons  followed  the  work  of  their  father.  The  name  Torresano 
appears  in  old  records  of  the  trade  in  Venice  and  Paris. 

Brown  suggests  that  the  reported  sale  of  types  by  Jenson 
to  Torresano  was  a  sale  of  matrices  from  which  fresh  types 
could  be  constantly  renewed.  This  practice  was  common; 
matrices  were  eagerly  bought  by  the  printers  of  England, 
Flanders,  and  France. 

Torresano  may  be  considered  as  the  practical  successor  to 
the  business  of  the  Jenson  printing  house.  John  of  Cologne, 
John  Manthen,  and  John  Herbert  discontinued  their  ac- 
tivity as  publishers  or  booksellers  in  a  few  years  after 
Jensen's  death,  but  Torresano,  who  had  acquired  much  of 
the  Jenson  plant,  was  eminent  as  a  publisher  as  late  as  the 
year  1500.    As  the  classics  of  Jenson  bad  not  proved  so 

79 


Plate  18 


Uibcr 

pH  jueias.'gn  rttracKffnts ifr*  tt  (o.clm. 

Kn.q.^^mSaf  l,j.?.q.(g.fi  faccr.ficut  nec  fiU' 
^diuti  pta'Kpatna.Coe  anna.ejrctp.l.).  in 
fi.i.tvj.q.fy.filaca.'ZtS  abbas  pmo  ?u<^ 
iiiedus  c.otcotn  noUa  colleg(o  ^uenlt  vC 
^DcntC  fine 

■act02ft8tf  p  C-Coi  ctofTicio  fuo  tf/ 
lati.c  fcoutr  ncan{»c6gregariond  fua^ 
fo  plat»  fiiit  rum  negocia  pzocurare 


K9ftftf.«.)Hj.q.g.(IfuJ.«.<J.lg.penrlfictff. 

b  Difcma.bfi  oidt  oilcrtca.qi  ft  fnnt  Ot' 
fcr«a.omn*no  nontdictiirrefpcndcrc  nifi 
be gte  fua.qj  rf fcrfpta  no  emiduni  ad  r<9  tf 
adgfonae  i  (is  nocopijcfae.iim  Mac  itdli 
g^da  fdt.ar.i 

riculi  vidcl5  ce  fubtracto/  eo.ftdee.-z  i" 
rd  rcrignarionctfuerit  ^/  ocof.tflf. 
ter  ?Wenttanoftratn°co'  ^"5  o  loikctl 
cmcli'.c.p. 


lineC  pUcnll    if«nrita  nt'irn/iVi  <><^r  /<iin< 


„,,^,.,„,,„,  uentue  negocia  cent  om/ 

coratoJC}  a\f  CO  mag.  lijocdTae  ra/ 

(pfo  ^lato DC  aue  perliturae (antpd/ 

2<(n(a  taps  dae  uritatur :  fed  factne 

coDitiitS.«  15  cotra  fozmam  reraipnjur 

CD  nt gocjum  ntue  nodof.  cap.cri). 

n^r     fi  vJ  lia.tl.aillofl?crun. 

Scia  pn  ac  ^curato:.g.mo. 

palrtrr  B  niaUe  fuper  decaombue 

capFai  ab  (p/  in  cadem  eccUlta  cdeou 

fo  capro  con  tia  Uiisaucrint  aliquidm 

rtiniaf  DC  au  cojam  ttoB.-imfra.  "Be 

ttorttatc'pla/-  p:ci;)endifnu0  littcrao  ad 

tfiira  D<  in'  abbatca  w  rentccl?  i  fu 

di.ca"m  q.C.  coniudtcca  impetra/ 

1$  tpU  cltr(.  jggc  per  furreptionem  ob 

biro&''"!  tcnmxamma^imu 

»eceac.<n  pn.i  J^ec  locfl  (jfft  qff  negocfa  ca. 
c  plcii  flint  oJfcrcfa.vi  d(cU  i  fi.fi  rcro  funt 
c5(a.^lat'0f  oknfu  capB  ?ft(tn(t  findkum. 
tn  vwiicfcdcniipll  c  inouidi1.j-nc fe.ra.c. 
l.g.i.iw.iUt'  iucciirr(t  pfcrfp.?  eccriam  ifra 
&e  pfcr(p.c.<.7.c^e  qrta.«  fi  fonecaprsagit 
no  futVlcftrabfequcs  pfenfueplati  ficut  ncc 
raffic(tfiibrcaueBauc(a9tut0}(d.fT.t5auc.tn. 
obI(gar/.§.v!.«  (nft(.<.tl.§.tutoj.r5ljoc  non 
crcdo.fuffidt.n.fipollta  acccdatptenrue  p^ 
lat(  vtl  ccouerfo.f.of  &ona.pafto2ar.«  ifra  t$ 
jjfaq  fi.a  ^la.fi.pftn.ca.cujnoe.'Zffca  Icicq 

ffirmat  pdfcta.q^v  g  r.o  allcnar(.n6  pot  re 
iuiUia  oeduccre.ff.oe  (urt  DtW.alt  pto:.frd 
gd  fi  lie  onaf  <n^  collegia  z  plaro.adcaf  fit' 
Blot  1  tile  t)3b(t  collegfo  carato:e  ad  Ute  tp' 
ram.cul'  ofTifi  celTabIt  Kte  fin(ta.(nfi(.t5  auc. 
tu.i  fi.T.ff.oe  tii.l.ly.^.fipupilliifl.i  fi. 
a  C  Zeneanf.'Z  gdc  tcnenf.lsno  fiat  men' 
tfotrefc  ipfonoie.n.pUttcccria itelUgiF.ip 
lat<  fnonafterfa.fr.ee  annu.lf. I  annna.§.j.« 
ff.oe?d<.eof.fil(efa.te(ctiaeiepo  «  eco' 
ncrfo.vii'.q.t.frire  br  bea.c.ff.tJ  rf.Du.c(uib» 
fi  tn  note  puureitdlfgif  ecctia.ftra  6  «rta. 


cuml?.ldefc,i..pmd.ce»  r^ecSa^'S 
fuo6  obrentiainfcrt''  fue/  ne  coft nfu  ca 
rat:Degbuain  k6ie  Ins  pn.ncccapl's 
nientio'nd  ficbat :  t  ideo  finepfenfup 
q6 ipfard Ifard occafione  Jati bfaicpnt 
ftignofcif  attftaium  curt  vt  ct«fi  e  i  ^ 
mue  irritadd.  "Etictu  in  us  noiula . 
fup  fcl?oIafhcd  icoiudi/  <i  i, 
CC0  fuoe  iucnim*min'p/  '^a. 
mdepcenrifTccu.n.i  lha  „af  ''"/J 
nfia  eifdct)naparrniada  b:o  fso?  al« 
rdrvtadpdictl  eccUfias  Dccfarevtpa 
pfonat'rf accedc'tce  pfone  tebit  cjc  ifrael 
idonee  adtniflrationeco  •  ccdis.Ddiidl 
minercnt  abbatie  cui  ad  tur pnc(pal(i 
op'ei'fierei  l?mcindc  rcfi  i  3"uoj  ptef.i 
gnaHofubtractopa^ifo:  Pf"*  f^u«ictc 
ntamniandaiiapofloUcc  "S'W"'"': 
trafponcree^lllocapro  ^."eSmSi 
do;:  (udfcn. 

ibf.Def  tendimu^.  7"  '<f*'a  frrifooecerntt 
pcefTu;  ^mo;>  (udtcn.  lt)/.E>(ctD.7n  quana 
comltiit  cim?  m9'datreftf(Uffpol(atoe,lb(* 
•3o<B  9b.fi.  c  tr  ^mpmatae  a  i  alfc  era'r.  vt 
ifra  Of  ercef.pla.itfroilcctoe.f  pterea, 
d  1  nonri.tcaceliarO.fralfcri'gbebatre 
QrMfrabefal.lj.e  i  ilbetlo.ctoPclftnra 
luai.s.e.cecep.necqtJ  p  e  ae  facta  c'.vtTftflC 
t  C"  IberfonaUier.no  cafus  nouii  co  m<da£ 
at(cii(.vtpronaUterntgoclnc>:equaf.p5tali| 
com<ttere  vices  fnas  fi  ptf e  co'fentt jnt  ntfi  i 
buob'  cafib  iie.3n  caufa  Inquifittcnls.  lie 
CD  papapulderimidateccrttaKculoe  pla^ 
tie  z  alije  mlnlflrls.ifra  De  offt.  oelc ga.  qtn 
8pr(ca.§.(9  aut.  et  e  fi.qb  oicit  Itr.  fi  j)tnl(i 
fit  in(i?(  p  tcfactiini  nauc  rel  ailqtJ  pfire.per 
allu  me  no  cSfentlctcface  no potee pp  idO' 
ftrfatuamquidcgi.fT.Derol.iierariifices. 
g  I-  Irifponetes.no  in  re fcrlpile  02d(ne| 
fcrlpturePiiandd.rt  l^.'z.jcKij.&i.fit  reao^.Ui 
fi.«.((j.q.nj.tngrau(b».'r.i|.q.  i.(n  prltnte. 
fT.oe  vfufru.quotiene.T  otdoverbo;:  oftc'dft 
o?dlne"^)celTua.t5  pfe.pl.i/.irpo  pie.T.ff.aJ 
treb.(2cred(9.(n  fi.ar-c^nira.e.co.cim  Qur. 


Andrew  Torresano.   Venice,  1498 
The  Decretals  of  Gregory 

Larger  type,  7i-point  .   .    .   Smaller  type,  6^a-point 


The  presswork  of  Andrew  Torresano 

salable  as  his  ecclesiastical  publications,  Torresano  gave  most 
attention  to  religious  literature. 

The  well-printed  Epistles  of  St.  Jerome,  Venice,  1488, 
in  two  folio  volumes  (leaves  101  x  16  inches)  is  one  of  the 
more  imposing  of  Torresano's  books.  It  comes  to  us  from 
Roman  types  cast  in  the  matrices  of  Jenson,  but  they  were 
fitted  to  a  smaller  mold  of  15i-point  body.  Its  page  of 
type,  5Ix12t  inches,  is  too  large  for  reproduction  on  this 
leaf,  but  the  type  is  unmistakably  that  of  Jenson.  The 
book  is  not  paged  in  Arabic  figures,  but  it  has  Roman 
numerals  at  the  foot  of  the  page  in  close  proximity  to  the 
signature  marks.  Composition  is  solid,  thin  spaced,  with 
few  breaks.  Its  presswork  is  clear,  firmer  than  that  of 
Jenson,  and  of  uniform  color. 

A  large  number  of  Torresano's  books  of  smaller  form 
are  printed  in  the  Black-letter  types  that  had  proved  more 
pleasing  to  the  ordinary  book  buyer.  The  Gregorii  Decretales, 
Venice,  1498,  a  book  of  658  leaves,  numbered  with  Arabic 
figures  in  front  margin  and  carefully  rubricated,  of  which  a 
facsimile  is  shown  in  plate  18,  is  a  fair  exhibit  of  Torresano's 
skill  in  Black-letter  printing.  In  the  trimmed  copy  before 
me  the  leaf  is  5  x  7  inches,  the  page  of  type  is  31  x  6  inches. 
Two  faces  of  type  are  used:  the  larger  for  the  text  is  on 
a  body  of  7i  points ;  the  smaller  for  notes,  on  a  body  of  6 /o 
points.  The  exceedingly  troublesome  composition  of  this 
page  has  been  done  with  much  discretion.  The  presswork 
is  very  black,  but  is  clean  and  readable  in  every  character. 
The  paper  is  thin,  smooth,  and  unsized.  The  red  ink,  a 
scarlet  vermilion,  is  not  so  uniform  in  color  as  the  black. 
Register  of  colors  is  exceptionally  good  considering  that 
presswork  was  done  in  two-page  forms,  probably  by  difierent 
pressmen  on  many  presses,  and  on  unsized  paper. 

81 


BARTHOLOMEW  OF  CREMONA 


The  facsimile  on  the  next  page  is  from  the  preface  matter 
of  an  edition  of  Virgil,  described  by  Brunet  as  the  work  of 
Bartholomew  of  Cremona,  printed  at  Venice  in  1472  in  the 
form  of  a  folio  of  232  leaves.  Its  similarity  to  the  type  of 
Jenson  is  suggested  at  first  glance;  it  has  the  open  form 
and  lightness  of  face,  the  feeble  superior  dot  on  the  right 
side  of  the  i,  and  other  mannerisms  of  that  master.  It 
was  cast  in  the  mold  for  16-point  body,  as  was  used  by 
Jenson  in  his  books  of  Roman  letter,  possibly  from  matrices 
struck  from  the  same  punches.  Proctor  says  it  is  almost 
indistinguishable  from  the  Jenson  type.  There  is  no  record 
of  a  sale  or  transfer  to  this  Bartholomew,  but  it  is  possible 
that  Jenson  may  have  sold  to  him  matrices  of  this  face, 
and  that  he  made  slight  changes  on  some  characters. 

Bartholomew  has  approved  himself  a  careful  printer,  for 
the  press  work  of  this  book  is  neater  than  that  of  Jensen's 
Quintilian  published  the  year  before.  Brunet  commends 
this  edition  of  Virgil  as  very  good;  de  Bure  honors  it  as 
very  beautiful.  A  copy  on  vellum,  not  often  used  by  early 
Italian  printers,  was  bought  from  the  McCarthy  collection 
at  the  price  of  2440  fi'ancs  when  old  books  were  held  at 
much  lower  prices  than  they  are  now. 

Bartholomew's  career  as  a  printer  in  Venice  was  short. 
He  began  in  1472  and  had  completed  at  least  six  books  in 
folio  or  quarto  at  the  end  of  the  following  year.  In  1474  he 
was  associated  Avith  Bartholomew  di  Carlo,  and  printed  one 
book.  Bartholomew  di  Carlo  succeeded,  but  he  produced  little. 

82 


Plate  19 


quidam  mediocris:  tacentibus  aliis  (ihi  afaipficQua 
ob  remdonatus:  honoratufqjab  Auguftofuit.Quod 
xquo  animo  non  feres  Virgih'us  nfdem  parietibus  af/ 
fixic  quater  hoc  pncipiu ,  Sic  uos  non  uobis .  Poftula/ 
bat  Auguftus  ut  hi  uerfusc6pleretur:quod  cu  fruftra 
ah'qui  conati  effent;  Virgilius  prxpofito  difticho  dc 
fubiunxtt  ♦ 

H  OS  ego  uerficulos  feci  tuh't  alter  honores  4 
S  ic  uos  non  uobis  nidificatis  aues. 
S  ic  uos  non  uobis  uellera  fertis  oues» 
S  ic  uos  non  uobis  melhficatis  "^pes . 
S  icuos  non  uobis  fertis  ararra  boues  . 
Q^uo  cognito  ahqiiamdiu  Bacyllus  Romx  fabula 
fuit:  Maroauteexaltatior.Cum  Enniumin  manuha/ 
beret  Virgilius:  rogareturqjquidnafaceret:  refpondic 
fe  auru  colhgerede  ftercore  Ennii.Habet.n.  poera  ille 
egregias  fententias  fub  uerbis  non  mulcum  ornatis. 
Incerroganti  Augufto  quo  padto  duitas  foehdt^r  gu/ 
bernatur :  Si  prudetiores  inquittemonem  tenuerit :  SC 
boni  mahs  preponat":  Itemqj  optimi  fuos  habeant  ho/ 
notes :nulli  tamen  alioru  iniufle  qcq  fiat.  At  Mecoe/ 
nas  Quidinqt  o  Virgili  fadetatem  homini  nonaHerti' 
Omnium  re^  refpoditiautfimilitudo-aut  multitudo 
ftomachu  fadunt  prater  intelhgere.  Ite  rogauit  quo 
pa<floquisalta  foehdtaceieiufq;  fortunam  feruare  po/ 
teft:  Si quarum  honore ac diuitiis  ahis  preftatior  fis: 
tanto  liberah'ta re  :&:  iuftitia  alios  fupare  nitans.  So/ 
litus  erat  dicere  nulla  uirtutem  comodiorem  effe  hoi 
patientia;acnullam  afperamadeo  effe  fortunam:  qua 
prudenter  patiendo  uir  fortis  non  uincat.Quam  fen/ 
tentiam  in  quinto  Aeneidorum  inferuit.  Nate  dea: 
quo  fatatrahut:retrahuntq?:fequamur.Quicqd  erit; 
uincenda  omnis  fortuna  ferendoeft.  Cum  qda  eius 
amicus  :Cornifidi  i  eu  maledidta:6<:  inimicin'as  enarra/ 
ret:  Qua  putas  inquit  huiufce  maliuolenria-  caufa.'' 
Na  neqj  unq  Cornifidum  offedi:&:  eum  amo.  An  iqt 
Hefiodi  fentetix  non  meminifti.'^ubi  ait.  Atchitedu 
Architecflo  inuidere:6i  poetam  poetserdemalisinquit 
grxcus  ille  itellexit.nam  boni  eruditiores  amant.  Sed 
magna  ciim  mea  gloria :  dc  laude  uindidam  in  manu 

Bartlioiomew  of  Cremona.    Venice,  1472 
Vergili  Maronis  Opera 

16-point 


Plate  20 


 ^ 

Addiuum  Alfonfum  Aragonum  6cucriu%Sicili$ 
regem  in  librosciuiliu  belloru  ex  Appiano  AlexaiT 
dnno  in  lati'nu  traductos  Pr^fatio  incipic  feliciffinic. 


WW 


Arcboru  regem  ut  abAnneo  accepi/ 
mus  fine  munere  falutare  nemo  po-' 
teft.  Ego  uero  glonofifTime  rex  cum 
tuam  uirtute  bumanirace^  cofidero 
turn  c^teras  nacurg dotes rquibus  m/ 
cergtatisnoftrgpnndpes  uel  in  pri' 
mis  illufcns  es^  lublime  ingenium  : 
fumma  cantate'  rummacontinencia 
nulla racione  addudponiim  utnon 
pluris  apud  te  fidem  mea  effe  exiftimem  q  ullas  opes.  Quip^ 
pe  cu  te  indigentibus  &  ueluti  e  naufragio  emerlis  ignotis 
ofFerreuideampias  manus.Cgtej^necfme  munere  aiteueni 
necuacuis(  utaiunt)manibus  tua  maieOrate  fum  adoraturus  . 
Namcu  priores  Appianilibros/Libycum:  Synum:  Parcbicu 
bi  Mitbridaticu  Nicolao  quinto  fumo  ponnfici  dum  i  buma^ 
nisageretegrgcotranftulifTem/  Reliquosciuilium  belloru m 
o5mentarios:qu5 Senatusipopulufc^  romanus  inuicem  geHTic 
'nundu  editos  aut  perfectos  a  me  ad  quem  potius  mitterem  q 
ad  te  luictiflime  princeps/Hilpanig  pariter  6c  Italig  noftrg  de' 
cus:  dCquinon  minus optimarum  aitium  ftudijs:6clitteris/q 
armis  mdytus  es:  atc^  memorandus.  Accipies  igic  nouu  opus: 
nec  indignu  regio  animorregioc^  cofpe'du  tuo.Sed  quod  cum 
priTcis  illis  uoluminibus  ab  bis:qui  biftori'as  Icripfere  pofteri/ 
tati  traditi's/  facile  con  fern' queat.  fun  contrarium  no  nulli 
refragentur(utgmulorum  mosell)quem  uelintexlacmis  in 
mediu m  adducant  fiue CnTpu  :riue  Cgfarem  rliue  Curtiu m : 
fiue  alia  uulgata  do(5toru  nomina/  eoru :  qui  biTtorias  icriple/ 
runt/  nullos  ex  bis:  qui  cum  ciuilibus  Appianihbns  confern 

a  2. 


An  ncus  Seneca  de 
rege  parcbovum. 


Nicolaus  papa  quin-' 
Libycus,  (cus. 
Syn'us. 
Parcbicu  s. 
Mitbndacicus. 


Crifpus. 

Cgfar. 

Curcius. 


Ivatdolt,  Loslein  and  Maler.    Venice,  147  7 
Appianus  Alexandrinus  de  bell  is  civilibus 


ERHARD  RATDOLT 


Erhard  Ratdolt,  the  second  son  of  a  worker  in  wood  of 
Augsburg,  Germany,  was  another  famous  printer  of  Venice. 
The  dates  of  his  birth  and  of  his  mechanical  training  as  a 
printer  are  unknown.  He  left  Augsburg  about  1474  and 
was  at  Venice  in  1476.  His  first  book  in  that  city  was 
the  Oalendarium  of  John  Miiller  of  Nuremberg,  a  small 
quarto  of  thirty  leaves,  which  has  distinction  among  early 
printed  books  for  the  novelty  of  an  engraved  border  of  high 
merit  around  words  that  then  served  for  the  title-page. 

The  facsimile  of  his  type  (plate  21)  is  from  his  edition 
of  the  Chronicles  of  Eusebius,  which  fairly  illustrates  his 
style  of  typography,  then  much  unlike  that  of  preceding 
printers  in  Italy.  Fourteen  introductory  pages  of  this 
book  are  in  Roman  type,  but  all  following  pages  are  in 
Gothic,  some  on  12-point  and  some  on  11-point  bodies. 
The  composition  of  the  chronicle  part  of  the  book  was  care- 
fully done  in  approved  table-work  style,  with  horizontal  lines 
or  rules  between  the  lines,  and  vertical  rules  dividing  the 
matter  in  columns.  Red  ink  fairly  registered  with  the 
black  is  freely  used  throughout  as  a  means  of  display  or 
distinction.  The  most  attractive  features  of  this  facsimile 
are  the  engraved  initials  which  he  used  freely  in  all  his 
books.  Other  printers  of  his  time  left  blank  spaces  for  the 
decorator,  which  were  not  always  worthily  filled  by  hand 
painting;  Ratdolt  tried  to  make  the  book  complete  as  to 
decoration  when  it  left  his  hands.  His  initial  letters  and 
borders  show  a  beauty  of  design  with  a  clearness  of  form 

85 


Plate  21 


EVSEBirCAESARIENSiS  EPISCOPICHRONICON  ID 
EST  TEMPORVM  BREVIARIVM  INCIPIT  FOELICI/ 
TERtQVEM  HiERONmVS  PRAESBITER  DIVINO 
EIVS INGENIO  LATIN  VM  FACERE  CVRAVIT  :ET  VS 
QVE  IN  Valente  Cffarem  Romano  Adiecit  Eloquio .  Que  ET 
Prolper  dcindc  Matbe?  palmeri'  Qui  ea  quf  cofecuta  fut  adiicere 
curauerc  cidc  poflpofiti  fubfequunf .  At  prima  Hieronymi  in  bui' 
codicis  aliquado  defcriptorcs  utarcbetypusdefcribat  adiuratio. 
VERBA  DIYI  L1TTERAR,VM  PRINCIPIS  HIERONKMI 


Diuro  te  qulcu^  bos  defcriplcris  libros 
p  dominu  nottru  iefu  cbriftu  et  gloriofu 
eius  aduentu'.in  quo  ueniet  iudicare  ui 
uos  &  mortuos  ut  coferas  quod  fcripfe 
ris  &:  cmedes  ad  exeplaria  ea  de  quib'? 
fcripferis  diligenter.Et  boc  adiuratiois 
genus  tranfcribas  &  tranlkras  in  cum 
codicem  qucm  dcfcripleris, 

Cbronica  Eufebii  Hieronymi  Indpit 
Pr^atio  Hieronymi 
Vlebius  Hieronymus  Vincentio  &  Galieno  fuis 
Salutem.  Vetus  ifte  dilertorum  mos  fuit  ut  exercen 
di  ingenii  caufa  gr^cos  libros  latino  fermone  abfbl 
ueret.  Et  quod  plus  i  fe  difficultatis  babet  poemata 
illuftriuuiroru  addita  metri  neceflitate  tranlTerret. 
Vnde  &:  nofter  Tulius  Platonis  integros  libros  ad 
uerbu  interpr^tatus  eft.Et  cCf  Aratu  ia  Romanu  bexamctr  is  ueifib? 
cdidiflet  in  xenopbontis  economico  lufitJn  quo  opere  ita  f^pe  au 
reQ  illud  flume  eloqueti^  quibufda  fcabris  &:  turbuletis  obicib?  re/ 
tardar  ut  qui  interprgtata  nefciut  a  Cicerone  dicta  no  credat.Difli/ 
die  eft  eni  alienas  linguas  infequente  no  alicubi  excidere  arduu'.ut 
qu^  in  aliena  lingua  bene  dicta  funt.eunde  decore  in  tranHatione 
coferuet,  Significatu  ell  aliquid  unius  uerbi  proprietatc  no  babeo 
meu  quoideffid3;&:dumqu^roimplererententia  longo  ambitu 


Erhard  Ratclolt.    Venice,  1483 
Tlie  Chronicles  of  Eusebius 


a  X 


13-point 


Ratdolt  a  designer  as  well  as  a  printer 

rarely  attained  by  the  ordinary  illuminator.  His  Roman 
types  on  13 -point  body  had  been  neatly  designed  and  truly 
alined  in  the  matrices  carefully  fitted  to  the  mold,  and  were 
properly  printed  with  even  color  of  ink.  Redgrave  says 
that  in  its  mechanical  workmanship  his  type-founding  is 
superior  to  that  of  Jenson  or  John  of  Speyer.  As  a  deco- 
rator Ratdolt  easily  surpasses  other  early  Italian  printers. 

Redgrave  catalogues  sixty- seven  books  by  Ratdolt  alone 
or  in  partnership  with  his  early  associates,  Bernhard 
Maler  and  Peter  Loslein.  Other  printers  had  selected 
for  publication  the  works  of  classic  or  ecclesiastic  authors 
and  printed  them  in  folio  size ;  Ratdolt  preferred  the  smaller 
size  of  quarto.  He  did  print  a  few  editions  of  classics  and 
canon  law,  but  he  was  more  successful  as  the  pubhsher  of 
small  school-books.  Some  of  them  concerning  astronomy 
and  geometry  were  illustrated  with  neatly  added  printed 
color.  The  most  remarkable  of  Ratdolt's  books  is  his 
edition  of  Euclid's  Geometry,  which  shows  a  beautiful 
border  and  admirable  diagrams.  The  entire  work  comprises 
one  hundred  and  thirty- eight  leaves  and  contains  420 
engravings  on  wood,  and  about  200  diagrams  constructed 
with  lines  from  rules  of  brass  or  type  metal. 

Ratdolt's  work  in  Venice  came  to  an  end  in  1486,  during 
which  year  he  returned  to  Augsburg  and  in  that  city  printed 
a  specimen  sheet  of  all  the  types  he  had  made.^ 

'  Erhard  Eatdolt  and  His  Work  at  Venice.  and  initial  letters;  but  the  printing  he 
A  paper  read  before  the  Bibliographical  did  there  does  not  show  the  care  that 
Society  of  London,  November  20,  1893,  by  was  bestowed  upon  similar  work  done  in 
Charles  T.  Redgrave.  Venice.  His  later  work  was  to  some  ex- 
Fifteen  of  the  types  which  are  shown  in  tent  inferior,  but  he  must  be  rated  as  one 
his  specimen  sheet,  on  different  bodies  rang-  of  the  masters  of  early  typography,  for 
ing  from  9-point  to  36-point,  are  of  the  more  his  versatility  is  shown  not  only  in  the 
popular  rounded  Gothic  form.  There  are  two  designing  and  engraving  of  letters,  hut  in 
faces  only  of  Roman  :  one  on  12-point  and  niceties  of  composition  and  presswork  never 
the  other  on  13-point  body.  Ratdolt  brought  attained  by  any  of  his  rivals,  some  of  whom 
to  Augsburg  many  of  his  Italian  woodcuts  were  the  printers  of  more  famous  books. 

87 


FRANZ  RENNER 


Franz  Rennbr,  of  Heilbronn,  Germany,  was  another  able 
printer  of  Venice,  in  whicli  city  he  began  the  practice  of  his 
art  as  early  as  1471.  I  find  no  record  of  his  education  in 
typography,  but  he  was  soon  approved  as  a  thoroughly 
qualified  master.  Within  two  years  he  planned  and  printed 
four  books  of  remarkable  merit.  In  1473  he  took  for  a 
partner  in  business  Nicolaus  of  Frankfort,  with  whose  aid 
he  produced  some  sixteen  large  books  before  1476.  Then 
Petrus  de  Bartua  succeeded  Nicolaus,  but  this  partnership 
produced  only  a  few  books  in  the  two  years  that  followed. 
In  1478,  freed  from  partners,  Renner  resumed  printing  and 
produced  at  least  seventeen  books.  No  book  bears  his  im- 
print or  is  accredited  to  him  after  1483,  although  he  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  living  in  1494. 

During  this  short  period  of  twelve  years  he  had  made  for 
the  use  of  his  printing  house  nine  faces  of  type — three 
of  Roman  and  several  sizes  of  Gothic  form.  All  indicate 
a  designer  of  remarkable  ability  and  refined  taste.  Two 
of  the  Gothics  were  of  very  small  size.  His  most  char- 
acteristic type,  not  shown  in  his  specimen,  is  that  of  the 
Quadragesimale  of  1472  (plate  22),  which  does  not  betray 
imitation  of  or  indebtedness  to  any  rival  printer  of  his 
period.  The  extreme  lightness  of  structural  lines  in  aU 
characters,  the  smallness  and  roundness  of  lower-case  and 
the  grace  of  the  capitals  give  to  this  type  strongly  marked 
individuality.  It  is  plainly  the  outcome  of  an  intent  to 
produce  in  easily  readable  type  some  of  the  delicate  features 
of  fine  Italian  penmanship,  but  it  did  not  prove  popular  as 

88 


Plate  22 


fSacre  tbeologie  magiftri  necno  facri  eloquii  preconis  celeberrimi  fratris  Ro^ 
bertide  Litio  ordinis  Minoi^  profefTorisopuscjuacIragerimale  putiiifTimum 
cjuod  de  penitentia  didum  eil.Feliciter  incipit. 

 _^ 

Dominica  in  Septuagefima.De  facilitate bonoijopie^eu  bene  operandi 
|)pt:  qua  peccatores  ad  pnfam  redire  debent.  .dSermo.i. 


(0 


Vlti  funt  uoca  ti  pauci  uero  clecfli,  Habenf  bee  uerba  MatKi. 
xx.c.flt  i  euageliobodierno.Propt'  nimia  caritate  fua  q  diligjt 
deus  ronale  creaturi  no  definit  uocitare  miferos  p£lores  port 
lapfum  atcj  ruina  peccatiut  adeii  redeantp  pniam.  Monet 
eos&expedat blade mTtifariamPtifcj{modisattrabit  &alli 
cit  illosutnodefjpent  fedcurraccofident?  adfontc  clementie  fue.PIenc^  uero 
negligut  renuut(]^  obedire  uoci  ei9  ruauifTime  exiftimantes  opa  bona  in  q^bus 
penitetes  exerceri  oportet/n6  folu  difFicilia  &  dura  fed  ojo  impofTibilia.  Quo 
errore  firmato  in  eoi^  mente/licentia  i  malo  |)reueradi  fufcipiut  indiefcj}  dete^ 
riores  fi'unt.Quappc'  exiftiaui  re  frucftuofifTima  facere/fi  aguero  qnta  fit  ad  bn 
operandum  redlecj  uiuendum  facilitas  &  fuauitas.Vnde  i  boc  fermone  ad  ex/ 
citanda  corda  dura  peccatoa^quos  deus  uocat  utp  penitentiam  eleffcoi^  nume 
ro  afcribanf  de  facilitate  bonoi^  opejj  ero  uerba  failurusiquonia  fapientifTim? 
mundi  redemptor  i  tbemate  iam  ^pofito  explicat  manifefte  tarditatem  renir 
tentium  qbus  falus  efle  non  potefl:  aflerens  multos  fore  uocatos  eledos  uero 
paucos.Quia  pauci  funt  fortes  animo  ad  uirtutum  opaaggredienda.^bus  faci 
litatc  aftuum  uirtuofoi^olidendamduxi  rnaxime  propc'  tria. 
^Primoppt?  cam  origialem.^j^(J?acile  eft  unicui<^  o|)ari  bonum  propt*  caufa 
^^-^Sc^^pt'  adiutoriudinaie.    originalemque  eftbominisuoluntaslibera.que 
^^ertiopp^  pmiii  eternale.    non  cogitur.  4L^CapFm  .i. 

Rimo  ondo  facile  effeunicuicj^oparibonuppt'  cam  originale.Nam  fi 
recfte  cofiderem?  unde  c  alig^  boni  ali^mali  fmt.nonulli  redle.nonl?i 
*uero  pniciofiflime  uiuat.inueniem?  pfe£to  id  puenire  ab  uniufcui9(^  libero  ar 
birrio  &  fpontanea  uoliitate.Hoc  afTeriit  ocs  fapientes  fiue  pKi  fiue  fancfli  Vti 
Ai1.x?.etbico7j.c.X)ii.ait.Iufl;ii  opari  omne  uolutariu  c.  Et  in  .iii.etbi.c.iii.  Virt? 
uoluntariu  c.&  nibilminus  &  malitia  uoluntariu  e.Et  ibide.Btus  ingt  nlPs  no^ 
lens  eft.Et  Seneca  li'de  morib?  ait.  Omne  peccatii  a£lio  c  uolutana.  Et  idem 
ad  Lucillii.Valentior  omni  fortuna  aius  c  &  in  utrac^  ptem  ipe  res  fuas  ducit 
btccj}  ac  mifere  uite  fibi  ca  eft.EtSaluftius  in  iugurticDuxatq?  impator  uite 

Franz  Renner.     Venice,  1472 
Quadragesimale  de  penitentia 

16-point 


Renner  expert  in  designing  large  type 

a  type,  for  it  was  too  frail  and  slender  for  the  ordinary  book, 
and  four  books  in  this  type  seem  to  have  been  enough  for 
the  book  buyers  of  this  time. 

One  of  the  largest  and  most  meritorious  books  of  the 
partners  is  the  Biblia  Sacra  Latina,  of  1476,  the  second 
edition  of  the  Bible  printed  in  Venice.  It  is  a  chunky  folio 
of  four  hundred  and  fifty-four  leaves  (including  the  index), 
on  a  paper  that  probably  measured  82  x  1 2  inches  before  it 
was  trimmed.  Each  page  has  two  columns  composed  in  a 
neat  condensed  Gothic  type  on  a  body  of  about  llh  points, 
and  is  printed  on  very  strong  paper  with  an  evenness  of 
color  and  impression  rarely  produced  by  any  contemporary. 
In  the  copy  before  me  initial  letters  for  each  chapter  have 
been  neatly  and  tastefully  inserted  after  printing  by  an  apt 
calligrapher  of  good  taste. 

The  desire  among  book  buyers  for  new  faces  of  type  seems 
to  have  been  as  great  in  the  last  quarter  of  the  fifteenth 
century  as  it  is  now,  for  it  induced  Renner  to  devise  a  new 
style  of  large  Roman,  which  is  here  shown  in  the  facsimile 
(plate  23)  of  his  edition  of  Johannes  de  Sacrobosco  Anglici, 
otherwise  known  as  John  Holy  wood.  It  is  a  thin  and  small 
quarto,  and  it  indicates  that  a  stronger  and  plainer  face  of 
Roman  letter  was  more  generally  acceptable  to  readers. 
The  new  face  has  few  peculiarities  of  his  first  style;  the 
characters  are  taller,  bolder,  and  more  condensed.  As  he 
then  had  no  smaller  face  of  Roman,  this  type  on  17-point 
body  had  to  serve  also  for  the  side-notes  as  well  as  for  the 
text. 


90 


Plate  23 


unicuic^.3<fo.graclui5  totftad^'s  terreniorbis 
ambitus  inuentus  eric.Ex  his  aute  I'uxta  ci'rcu' 
li  &  diametri  regulam :  terr§  diameter  fic  in^ 
ueniri  potent.  Aufer  uigefima  fecunda  parte 
dedrcuitu  terrg:  6cremanetistertia  pars,  hoc 
efl:.  So  1 8  i.ftadia  6c  femis  &  tertia  unius  ftadij 
erit  terreni  orbis  diameter  fiue  fpiflitudo. 
C[  (Capitulu  fecundum  de  drculis  ex  quibus 
fpera  materialiscomponitur:  Etilla  fupercg^ 
lefli's  qug  p  iftam  imaginat  coponi  intelligic. 

(Dru  aute  drculoru  quida  funt 
maiores:quida  minoresrutfen 
fui  patet.  Maior  enim  circulus  Maior  circulus  in 
in  fpera  didc  qui  defcriptus  in     fpera  quid  fir. 
fuperfide  fperg  fuper  ems  cen^ 
tru  m :  diu  I'di't  fperam  in  duo  gqualia.  Minor  Minor  drculus. 
uero  qui  defcriptus  i  fuperfide  fper§  earn  no 
diuiditin  duo  gqualia/fedi  portionesi'ngqua' 
les.Inter  drculos  uero  maioresrprimo  dicen/ 
dum  eR-  degqumodiali .  Eft  igi'tur  gqui'no^  Aequinodli'alis 
dialis  circulus  quida  m  diuides  fperam  m  duo  drculus, 
Squalia  fecunduquamlibetfui  partem  gque 
diftans  abutroc^polo.  Etdiciturgquinodtia/ 
lis.quonia  quandofol  tranfitpenllumrquod 
eft  bis  in  anno  / 1  principio  arietis  fdlicet  6c  in 


Franz  Renner.    Venice,  1478 
Johannes  de  Sacrobosco:  Sphsera  Mundi 

17-point 


JACOB  RUBEUS 


There  had  been  in  Venice  before  the  year  1501  more  than 
two  hundred  master  printers,  and  two  milHon  volumes  is 
regarded  by  Bernard  as  a  reasonable  estimate  of  their  per- 
formance during  this  short  period  of  thirty  years.  Many 
of  the  owners  or  managers  of  the  new  printing  houses  were 
Germans,  but  Jacob  Rubeus,  the  printer  of  the  Herodotus, 
of  which  the  first  page  (plate  24)  appears  in  facsimile,  says 
in  the  colophon  that  he  was  from  France.  This  type  on 
16-point  body,  more  compressed  but  apparently  modeled 
after  the  bold  style  of  John  of  Speyer,  is  not  quite  so  black 
of  face,  but  it  was  more  carefully  designed  and  founded. 
It  shows  at  first  glance  the  desire  of  the  engraver  to  pro- 
duce a  type  that  should  be  easily  read,  and  it  follows  the 
prevailing  fashion  of  closely  fitted  and  compressed  letters. 
Neatness  in  composition  and  presswork  appears  on  every 
page  of  the  book,  but  it  is  thoroughly  medieval  in  style; 
it  has  no  running  title,  catchwords,  signature  marks,  or 
paging  figures.  Abbreviations  occur  frequently,  but  they 
have  not  been  made  needlessly  by  the  mangling  of  words  to 
confusion,  as  was  the  practice  then  by  the  printers  of  cheap 
books.  Attempt  seems  to  have  been  made  to  help  the  reader 
with  hyphens  for  broken  words  at  the  end  of  lines.  Diphthongs 

and  ce  appear  in  words  as  justified  by  present  usage. 

Rubeus  printed  over  twenty  books  of  merit  at  Venice 
between  1473  and  1478,  and  some  in  other  towns  or  cities 
of  Italy,  to  which  he  afterward  removed.  Notices  of  the 
man  and  his  works  are  scant.  Although  a  careful  printer, 
he  has  not  received  generous  appreciation. 

92 


Plate  24 


Hcrodoti  Halicarnafci  Hiftoriar um  Liber  Primus. 

ERODOTIHalicamafeihiftorix  cxpli 
catio  hxc  eftiut  nec^  ea  qus  gcfta  fu  c  ex 
tebus  huanis  oblitercnt'seuomec^  ingetia 
6c  admirada  opa  uel  a  gtxcis  edica  uel  a 
batbatis  gloria  fraudetur:cii  alia:cu  uero 
quade  reifti  inter  fe  belhgcraueriit,Per^ 
I'aru  eximii  memorat  difTenfionis  audlo^ 
;:qui  a  mari  quod  rubrum  uocatur  in  hoc 
nod^  ^fidfcentes  6C  banc  incoleces  regtonetquam  nuc  quo(^ 
incolunc  longinquis  continuo  nauigationibus  incubuerunt : 
hdtndifc^  zgyptia^  6C  affyriarum  mercium  uedturis  in  alias 
plagas  praedpue^  argos  traiccctunt,  Argos  6c  enim  ea  tcpeftatc 
omnibus  ciuitatibus  regionis.-quxnunc  graedandiatur:anceb 
Iebat«Hucappulfos  phcenices  merdmoniaexporuifre:^:  qui^ 
to  fcxto  ue  q  appuliucnt  die  cundtis  fere  diuenditis  foeminas 
ad  mare  uenifTe  cu.  alias  multas:tum  uero  regis  filiam  cui  no^ 
men  efTet  idem  quod  grxd  tradunt  lo  filiam  Inachi .  Dximc^ 
hx  foeminse  puppi  nauis  afftftctes  ea  mfcrcarctur;  quae  cuiufqj 
auiditas  maxime  ferebat;in  cas  phoenices  fefe  adhortatos  im^ 
petum  feafTe :  ddipfarum  plenfqj  aufugientibus  lo  cum  alits 
aliquot  raptam  FuifTe :  eifq;  in  nauemimpofitis  phcenices  in 
jEgyptum  uela  fecifTe »  Hunc  itaqj  in  modum  lo  i  acgyptum 
abifte  memorant  pcrfae  non  queadmodum  grxd :  6c  hoc  in^ 
iuriarum  principiil  extitiffe  .  Pod  hxc  grzcorum  quofdam 
quorum  noia non  tradunt  nec  tenentJtyrum  appulfos  filiam 
regis  rapuiffe  Europam .  Fuerunt  autem  hi  cretes:  illifqj  par 
pari  repenfum .  Vc^  poftea  grscos  fecunda:  iniuriae  audores 
extitiffe  longa  ucdi nauc  in  oram  colchidis  6C  ad  phafim  flu/ 
uium  cum  caetera  tranfegiffent  quo^i  gratia  ucnerant  abfpot'' 
tarunt  illinc  filiam  regis  Medcam :  Ad  qua  repofccndam  poe^' 
nafqj  dc  raptu  petendas  cum  icx  colchorum  caduceatorem 
mifilTettgraecos  refpodiffe  ut  illi  de  tapfa  lo  argiua  poenas  fibi 
no  dediffent  :ita  ne  fe  quidemtllis  daturos*  Secunda  dehinc 

Jacob  Rubeus.    Venice,  1474 
Herodotus  of  Halicarnassus 

16-point 


BAPTISTA  DE  TORTIS 


Type  of  compressed  face  that  would  enable  the  compositor 
to  put  more  letters  in  a  line  of  print  was  another  experiment 
of  early  printers,  but  this  expedient  did  not  add  to  the  clear- 
ness of  the  print  when  very  thin  spaces  were  put  between 
words.  Thinnest  types  on  bodies  of  12-  10-  8-  and  6-point 
were  really  needed  for  the  side-notes  of  a  text  in  larger  type 
which  sometimes  inclosed  this  text  on  three  or  four  sides. 

Plate  25,  the  facsimile  of  one  page  of  type  from  the 
edition  of  Silius  Italicus,  printed  by  Baptista  de  Tortis  of 
Venice  in  1483,  shows  that  Italian  type-founders  were 
steadily  increasing  in  skill  and  experience.  Here  are  two 
sizes  of  type  of  similar  face— one  on  1 6-point  and  one  on 
llj-point  body — that  show  harmony  in  design,  although 
the  larger  seems  fairly  open  while  the  smaller  is  too  compact.^ 

The  old  Italian  mannerism  of  keeping  apart  with  a  space 
the  initial  capital  letter  of  each  line  of  poetry  is  here  main- 
tained. Improvement  in  the  shape  of  these  capital  letters 
may  also  be  noticed.  The  side-notes  on  IH-point  body,  of 
bold  face,  set  solid,  show  the  printer's  desire  to  crowd  a 
large  amount  of  reading  matter  in  small  space.  A  student 
of  type  will  also  note  that  the  serifs  of  letters  are  always 
short  and  stubby,  and  that  there  are  few  hair-lines  worthy 
of  the  name.    Every  type  is  bold  and  distinct. 

De  Tortis  was  more  skilful  as  a  printer  than  some  of  his 
contemporaries  who  now  have  a  higher  reputation.  Many 

'Each  series  is  pleasing  when  viewed  apart  the  same  style  as  copied  by  the  Elzevirs  of 

or  in  connection  with  its  mated  size.    Its  Leyden  in  1634.    A  similar  face  is  now 

closely  fitted  letters  on  il-|-point  body  appar-  made  in  America  under  the  name  of  Elzevir 

ently  served  as  models  for  a  lighter  face  in  or  Cadmus. 

94 


Plate  25 


laccttproftrata  eft  magna  pan pugnantuenfecominas:ordoeft:eapatrc  qua  ducif  enUs  dewra 
facet panbellantu & ftabant pugnantcs fup cadauera  fuo^  & calcabaradhuc gemere$.  Nec magis 
aut  Iibyco:pertinaciamiliru  in  pugna6^ftadiuneIococedanc:c5paratmotiqui fludbibusimpadis 
refiftit  &  locojmoueri non  poteft.  Protruditretro impelli pubes  romana conatu  hoftili &econtra 
AuertitcogiutdetrergJ.  Sarrana  manus:poeni  milites.  Suo  ordine:acie&pugnaftararia.  P5 
tusrmare  ilhfis  fludtibus.calpe  mons  ad  f return  gaditanu  ♦  Araifere  fpaciu:adeo  confecaa  erat  ac 
denra  acies  &  pugna  ut  non  effet  locus 

g  ellantum  pars  magna  iacct  fupcr  ipfa  fuorum 


dC  fpaciii  ad  icrus  inferendos:  fed  alter 
altera  impellebat  nec  poft  mortelice 
bat cadere  ad  terram.  Ar<5tatis:defis . 

FIichi:confli<9:u.  Ardefcit:  uidebaf 
ardere  8i  fcinnllascmitterc  impulfu  al 
terius  galeae;  Farifdt.aperiC6^ frangif 
impulTu  alterius  dypei.  Retunditur: 
cbesfit&  frangift&multitudoteloru 
in  aere  folis  radios  repel lebat .  Nox 
denfatobfcuritasqua  tela  lada  faciebat 
Qu is:quibus.  Secudo  locoipoft  pri 
ma  aciem  pugnabanthaftis:  conti  funt 
haftaelongiores&obuftae.  Procerx:lo 
gae.  Ceu  primas.i.  ac  fi  efler  in  prima 
acie.  Arquos.i.tyronesqui  erant  in  ul 
timoordine.ingloriusilledicifquino 
dum  gloria  confequurusefl.tyronescu 
fint  noui  milites  funt  ingloni.  MifTi 
libus :  telis  quaemittebant  in  hoftes  & 
nitebanf  acquarepugnasco^qui  erant 
in  prima  acie.  Vltra.i.illi  qui  erant  i 
ulterioreordineadeo  ut  no  poffentte/ 
lis  holies  con  tingere  clamore  bel  1  u  ge/ 
rebat.  Inops cupiti martis: illi  q  no po 
terat  cominus  pugnaf  ut  cupiebat  feuis 
&horrendis  clamoribusipellebat  ho/ 
ftcs.  Non  defit:  non  deerf antique  diV 
dhim  eft.  Vir,  Lac  mihi  non  adftate  no/ 
uumnecfrigoredefit.  Sude:palo  ob/ 
ufto,  Pinu  flagrante:  txda  ex  pinu ar/> 
dentefeu  face,  Pilnhafte:  pilum  erat 
hafta  romao^.  laculo  uolucri:  ueloci 
uolucreeftquicquid  uolat.  unde  fagic 
tam'appellamusuolucremi  Harudo: 
fagftta  harudinea:  dephalarica  didtil 
eft fupra  ubi  cecinitjuix  muris  toleran 
da  lues.  Speramusnedea?:huiushor/ 
ridspugnae  euentu  narraturus:  poeta 
uotu  repetitad  uirgilii  imitatione:  ex 
horatii  praccepto  in  artepoetica  8i  utff 
addubitatione  ut  deuitetarrogatiam : 
polTumusne didt  fper^f  o  mulx  ut  co 
cedaf  hancpugna  monumetis  Ifa^^fli 
carmibus  pofteritati  trader  fauoreque 
mufa^  emeref  cii  ilh^  fe  facra  colore 
dicit.  Mortali  uoce:huano carmie  no 
diuino.  Diemrpugnam  huius  diei  ad 
Aperirein  feculajmadarelfis 


C  orporaxonfiftunc  auidixalcantque  gementcs. 
N  cc  magis  aut  libyco  procrudi  dardana  nifu 
A  uerii  ue  poteft  pubes;aut  ordme  pelli 
F  ixa  fuo  (arrana  manus  g  udlere  f ede 
S  i  temptetcalpenimpacbogurgitepontus. 
A  mifere  idms  fpacium.nec  morte  peracla 
A  rdatis  cecidiffc  licet:  galea  horrida  fliclu 
A  duerfae  ardcfdt  galea?.clypeufque  fatifcit 
I  mpulfu  clypei:atque  enfis  contunditur  enfe. 
P  es  pede:uirque  uiro  teritiir;tellu(que  uideri 
S  anguie  opcrta  nequit:coeluque  et  fydera  pedes 
A  bftulit  in  geftis  nox  denfa  fub  ethere  telis. 

uis  aftare  loco  dederat  fortuna  fecundo 
C  ontorum  longo  et  proccrae  cuf pidis  iclu; 
C  eu  ptimas  agitent  acies;certamina  mifcent. 
A  t  quos  deinde  tenet  retrorfum  inglorius  ordo 
M  iffilibus  certant  pugnas  sequare  priorum. 

V  Itra  clamor  agitbellum:milefque  cupid 
M  artisinops  feuis impellituodbushoftcm. 
N  ec  uUum  defit  teb"  genus  .hi  fude  pugnas 
H  i  pinu  flagrante  cient:hi  pondere  pili . 

A  t  faxis  f undaque  alius  iaculoquc  uolucri 
I  nterdumque  ipfis  metuenda  f alarica  muris 
I  nterdumftridenspernubila  ferturarundo 
S  peramus  ne  dcx  quarum  mihi  facra  coluntur. 
M  ortali  totum  huncaperire  in  fccula  uoce 
P  ofce  diemftantum  ne  datisconfidere  lingua:: 

V  t  cannas  uno  ore  fonem.fi  gloria  nobis 

N  oftra  placet  nequc  uos  magnis  auertitis  aufis. 
H  uc  omnis  cantus  phoebumque  uocate  parcnte 

V  eruutinapofthacanimoromansefecunda 


cannas, 

ut  p  ofa  faecula  huius  pugnae  memoria  habeaf .  Daristcoceditis  ne  hoc  meaj  linguae  ut  uno  ore  cana 
hoc  phu  ad  canas  uicu  apulie.  Si  gloria  uobis:fi  uidor  uobis  dignus  hacgloria  8i  fi  uobis  placet  ade 
mihi  una  cu apol lie  q  e  poeta^^  nume.  Magnisaufis:his meispn'cipiis qm audeus res magnasSf  qfi 
fupra  uires.  Parete:phoebus  no fuit  pf  mufa^  fed  df  ad  ueneratione;fic  et  pf  poeta^.  Ve^  utina 
poft  hac:optat  poeta  ut  r5ani  eo  aio  defceps  ferat  ^fperitare  fortuaj  quo  ilia  calamitatead  canas  tu/ 
IeriJt:romani  qppe  feciidis  rebus  elati:potitique  re^  ad  luxu  fe  tota  mete  uerterunt  &  fic  cecidere: 
luxuria  romao^  coepit  euerfa  coritho  A.L.miamio  &allata  j^da  excypro&  catoe.  lege  Liuiu  li.ix. 
de  cadis  belli  maced5ici:&  Pliniii.  Pofthac:poft  hoc  rpus.  Ai'o  tafo.l,&:  ta  coftati  qm  i  reba  fecudis 
demus  ee  modrati.na  fpiu  ut  I'qt  Salu.  Facile  hisartibj  retinef  qbo  f  inicio  parrd  e:ue^  ubip  labo 
re  defidia^p  continentia  atque  a:quitate  libido  at<p  fupbia  iuafer  fortuafimul  cu  moribj  imutaf 

Baptista  de  Tortis.    Venice,  1483 
Silius  Italiciis:  Punlca 

Larger  type,  16-point  .   .  .   Smaller  type,  llj-point 


Growing  demand  for  small  books 

of  his  books,  on  subject-matter  of  slight  interest  now,  are 
obsolete  and  in  small  request,  and  consequently  his  service 
to  printing  is  undervalued.  He  was  an  industrious  pub- 
lisher ;  Burger  names  one  hundred  and  eighty  books  printed 
by  him  between  1480  and  1500. 

Smaller  types,  as  used  by  de  Tortis  (plate  25)  and  de 
Zanis  (plate  26),  are  indications  that  printers  of  that  time 
were  discovering  that  types  cast  on  large  bodies  were  too  big 
for  the  page.  Although  they  made  the  book  of  too  high  cost, 
printers  could  not  put  aside  the  traditional  respect  that  had 
always  been  paid  to  the  imposing  folio.  They  tried  to  meet 
the  wishes  of  economical  book  buyers  by  maintaining  the 
large  leaf  and  by  crowding  it  with  more  words  in  smaller  let- 
ters. To  make  the  smaller  size  of  type  that  was  desired, 
compression  had  to  begin  with  punch-cutting.  The  vertical 
strokes  of  ascending  and  descending  letters  were  made  shorter. 
The  change  from  a  body  of  16 -point  to  12 -point,  with  a 
corresponding  sidewise  compression  for  each  letter,  largely 
increased  the  number  of  words  that  could  be  put  on  a  page. 
Four  hundred  or  more  could  be  compressed  within  a  space 
previously  occupied  by  less  than  two  hundred,  but  the  nar- 
rowing of  the  relief  of  white  space  between  lines  and  the 
crowding  together  of  the  side  lines  of  each  letter  made  the 
print  harder  to  read,  when  type  had  been  set  in  a  measure 
five  inches  wide.  A  resetting  of  the  type  for  a  page  in  two 
or  three  narrow  columns  made  print  more  easily  readable, 
but  the  student  had  to  wait  some  years  for  the  small  type 
and  small  leaf  made  popular  by  Aldus  Manutius.  Four 
centuries  have  attested  the  correctness  of  Dr.  Johnson's 
dictum  that  the  most  serviceable  books  are  those  that  can 
be  held  in  one  hand. 


96 


Plate  2  6 


THESEI  VITA  PER  LAPVM  FLORENTINVM  EX  PLVTARCHO 
GRAECO  IN  LATINVM  VERSA, 

VEMADMODVM  IN  ORBIS  TERRA  ESITV  DESCRP 
bendo  hiftorid  folent:  ut  ad  quae  ipfi  cognitione  afpirare  non  pof/ 
funt;extremis  tabularum  partibus  fupprimentes  quibufdam  adu> 
ciunt  locos  efl'e  uaftos  arenofos  8C  caclo  terra^  penuriam  aquarum 
aut  limum  infupcrabilemiaut  montem  fl;iticuiii:aut  aftridtum  fri/ 
gore  pontum:i'ta&  nobis  in  hacuirorumcollationeperpetua  re^ 
hiftoria  quantum  probabili  orauoneaflequipotuimusrde  his  quos  fupra  memo 
rauimus  uiris  tepora  percurrentibus  uere  licuir  affirmare.  Quae  uero  annquiora 
ac  ueruHiora  runt:tragica  6C  moflruofa  poecae  6C  fabulofi  re^  fcriptores  occupant; 
nec  ultra  fide  ullam  nec  certitudinem  pra^fe  ferunt«Cum  igitur  Lycurgi  legum  la 
tons  dC  Numae  regis  res  geftas  litteris  madauerimus:haud  ab  re  fuerit  ad  Romu^ 
Iumorationemconuertere:quandohiftoriaipfaad  eius  tempora  gprope  acceffi/' 
ttiuStSed  mihi  diu  cogitanii  huic  uiro(ut  inquit  Aefchilus)quis  c6ueniret:quem 
ilIiopponerem:quis  dignus  Tecum  in  comparationeconiugi :  uifum  ett.  candem 
^ciehdum  efle :  ut  a  quo  celebrata  Athenielium  ciuicas  amplificata    earn  cum 


Bartliolomew  de  Zanis.  Venice, 
Plutaa-cli's  Lives 

llj-point 


1496 


au 


BARTHOLOMEW  DE  ZANIS 

When  printers  discovered  that  large  types  and  leaves  made 
books  slow  of  sale,  they  sought  the  aid  of  artists  in  the 
hope  that  decoration  might  give  them  proper  attractiveness. 
Illustration  had  been  tried,  but  in  a  timid  manner.  Ratdolt 
had  printed  some  of  his  smaller  engraved  diagrams  in  color ; 
Renner  had  made  initial  letters  to  be  printed  with  the  text- 
types  that  were  much  superior  in  design  to  those  of  the  aver- 
age calligrapher.  De  Zanis,  the  printer  of  an  edition  of 
Plutarch's  Lives  (plate  26),  attempted  a  bolder  ventm-e.  Its 
first  page  contains  a  large  engraving  in  outline  of  the  combat 
between  Theseus  and  the  Minotaur,  and  he  inclosed  this  full 
page  with  a  broad  border.  Each  page  was  provided  with 
initial  letters  of  small  size,  but  of  real  merit.  De  Zanis 
could  not  fi'ee  himself  from  traditional  methods  of  compact- 
ness. Chapters  of  this  Plutarch  begin  with  huddled  capital 
letters  and  the  text-types  that  closely  follow  are  always  pre- 
ceded with  an  initial  neatly  designed  and  engraved.  These 
initials  were  needed,  for  they  gave  a  proper  relief  to  the 
density  and  somberness  of  the  closely  spaced  words  and 
closely  fitted  types  on  llj-point  body.  These  types  have 
thick  strokes  of  unusual  width  for  their  height,  with  stubby 
serifs  and  few  hair-lines,  that  combine  to  give  the  general 
effect  of  Black-letter  to  the  gloomy  print.  The  scamping  of 
white  space  between  lines  and  words  was  a  practical  return 
to  the  old  disproportion  of  black  to  white  that  is  found  in 
many  Gothic  manuscripts  and  books  printed  in  Black-letter. 
In  nearly  two  hundred  pages  of  solid  composition  there  is 
not  one  paragraph.    The  chapter  is  the  paragraph. 

98 


Very  small  types  find  greater  favor 

De  Zanis  met  the  demand  for  less  costly  editions  half-way ; 
he  reduced  the  size  of  types,  hut  he  retained  the  large  leaf. 
This  was  not  a  wise  choice,  for  small  type  set  solid  and 
closely  spaced  in  lines  five  inches  wide  is  difficult  to  read. 
He  had  crowded  in  one  volume  the  words  that  filled  two 
volumes  in  other  editions.  This  treatment  was  of  economy 
in  cost  hut  not  a  convenience  to  the  reader. 

The  black  background  for  the  initials  and  border  of  the 
de  Zanis  edition  of  Plutarch's  Lives  illustrates  a  mannerism 
of  engraving  in  relief  that  did  not  long  continue  in  favor. 
A  folio  Bible  printed  in  Hebrew  type  at  Soncino  in  1488 
with  a  soHd  border  more  than  two  inches  wide  shows  the 
culmination  of  this  style.  Printers  everywhere  were  taught 
by  many  failures  that  sufficient  pressure  could  not  be  given 
to  the  frail  hand  press  then  in  general  use  to  transfer  ink 
properly  and  in  solid  mass  to  ordinary  paper.  The  outline 
style  of  the  Theseus  was  more  generally  adopted. 

Other  printers  in  and  out  of  Italy  were  experimenting 
then  with  small  type.  Black-letter  of  thick  face  had  been 
made  by  Jenson,  Ratdolt,  and  Renner  on  small  bodies,  but 
few  printers  had  tried  at  that  time  to  crowd  the  round-faced 
Roman  letter  on  a  very  small  body.  There  was  a  general 
belief  among  many  printers  that  the  condensed  lines  of 
Black-letter  were  more  adaptable  to  the  required  compres- 
sion. As  early  as  1490  John  Froben  of  Basle  made  and 
used  for  books  a  Black-letter  tjrpe  on  6 -point  body.  Not 
long  after  a  6 -point  type  of  Roman  face  was  made  in 
Venice,  which  was  then  regarded  as  the  extreme  limit  of 
compression.  The  new  size  was  imitated  by  type-makers 
in  all  printing  countries,  and  was  much  admired.  In  all 
languages  this  size  was  known  by  the  name  of  Nonpareil. 


99 


mmm 


I'irmin-Didot's  AlOe  Manuce  et  l'Hell6nisrae  a  Venise 


ALDUS  MANUTIUS 

Aldus  Manutius,  most  famous  of  early  Italian  printers, 
fairly  earned  this  distinction  during  his  lifetime  for  the  good 
service  he  gave  as  editor,  educator,  and  publisher.  He  was 
born  at  Bassiano,  Sermoneta,  in  1450,  and  showed  a  predilec- 
tion for  books  and  study  at  an  early  age,  serving  through 
his  early  manhood  as  a  tutor.  When  forty  years  old  he 
went  to  Venice  to  edit  and  prepare  for  printing  the  writings 
of  Grreek  authors  previously  neglected  but  then  held  in  more 
esteem.    His  duties  as  editor  made  him  acquainted  with  the 

100 


Aldus  preferred  Greek  authors 

bookseller  Torresano,  with  whom  he  and  his  son  afterward 
had  close  business  and  social  relations.  His  chroniclers  do 
not  plainly  say  that  he  began  as  an  editor  for  Torresano, 
but  that  inference  is  warrantable.  Aldus  was  his  associate 
for  several  years;  he  married  his  daughter  Maria  before 


Aldus  Manutius.   Venice,  1495 
Aristotle 

20-point 

1499,  and  Torresano,  as  father-in-law,  afterward  managed 
and  preserved  the  printing  business  for  the  sons  of  Aldus. 

As  early  as  1495  Aldus  was  an  active  and  independent 
publisher.  Burger  accredits  him  with  the  publication  of 
thirty-seven  books  before  1501,  of  which  the  four  earliest 
issued  were  in  Greek  type.  One  is  an  Aristotle  in  folio, 
from  which  the  above  facsimile  has  been  taken. 

101 


Duties  of  an  early  publisher  and  printer 

To  the  prudent  man  of  business  the  reprinting  of  Greek 
authors  must  have  seemed  the  most  quixotic  of  enterprises, 
for  printing  in  Italy  had  ah-eady  been  overdone.  When  Aldus 
reached  Venice,  there  were,  or  had  been,  one  hundi'ed  and 
thirty-three  printers  and  publishers  in  that  city ;  all  of  them 
were  diligently  engaged  in  glutting  the  market  with  books 
of  uncertain  sale.  The  state  of  the  trade  at  Rome  and  in 
other  Italian  book  markets  was  no  better. 

The  duties  of  a  printer  and  publisher  of  the  fifteenth 
century  were  more  arduous  than  they  are  now.  The  modern 
printer  waits  for  orders  to  print ;  a  modern  publisher  invites 
or  accepts  the  works  he  publishes;  few  pretend  to  edit  the 
books  to  be  produced.  The  early  printer  had  to  hunt  up  a  fair 
copy  of  the  volume  to  be  printed  and  have  it  wisely  edited ; 
his  merit  as  printer  was  largely  rated  by  his  ability  as  an 
editor.  The  manuscripts  he  needed  were  scarce ;  many  had 
errors  made  by  unqualified  copyists;  all  of  them  called  for 
critical  reading  and  correction  before  a  true  copy  could  be 
given  to  the  compositor.  To  buy  or  borrow  different  copies, 
to  compare  them,  and  prepare  a  new  text  for  printing,  could 
not  be  done  without  much  time,  money,  and  scholarship. 

One  difiiculty  in  Aldus's  path  was  his  ignorance  of  the 
mechanical  details  of  printing  and  publishing,  for  he  did  not 
enter  the  trade  through  the  regular  door  of  apprenticeship. 
There  is  no  evidence,  no  probability,  that  he  ever  composed 
a  page  of  type  or  printed  a  quire  of  paper  with  his  own  hands. 
From  the  technical  point  of  view,  he  was  not  a  printer,  yet 
he  was  better  qualified  for  this  work  than  any  of  his  rivals. 
Printing,  as  then  practised,  did  not  suffer  for  lack  of  mechan- 
ical skill.  There  was  then  no  need  of  steam  presses,  type- 
setting or  paper-making  machines.  In  every  branch,  from 
type-founding  to  presswork,  the  machinery  was  amply  good 

102 


Irregularities  of  manuscripts  in  Greek 

enough  for  the  work  to  be  done,  and  was  worthily  used. 
But  there  was  sore  need  of  greater  scholarship — need  of  a 
printer  who  could  do  something  more  than  servilely  multiply 
the  texts  he  handled.  Aldus  was  the  first  of  the  craft  who 
dignified  it  with  marked  editorial  ability. 

Aldus  had  to  create  the  Greek  types  he  needed.  Clumsy 
Greek  types  had  been  made  at  Rome,  Milan,  and  Florence; 
one  series  was  fitted  to  capitals  more  Gothic  than  Greek; 
another  was  entirely  in  Greek  capitals;  all  were  meanly 
provided  with  accents  and  full  of  badly  formed  and  almost 
unreadable  characters.  It  was  difficult  to  get  a  good  model. 
Some  copyists  wrote  in  uncials,  some  in  cursive,  some  in  the 
old  mural  capitals,  and  some  combined  different  styles  and 
added  mannerisms  of  their  own.  The  old  saying,  "It  's 
Greek;  skip  it,"  came  not  merely  from  the  strangeness  of 
the  language  but  from  the  capriciously  varying  forms  of 
the  written  letters.  Aldus  thought  it  necessary  to  design, 
cut,  and  cast  an  entirely  new  character,  in  which  he  tried 
to  combine  the  legibility  and  grace  of  the  small  cursive 
letters  then  made  by  Demetrius  of  Crete,  as  shown  in  the 
Greek  grammar  printed  in  1476  by  Paravisinus  of  Milan, 
with  the  severe  dignity  of  the  old  capitals  as  they  were 
soon  after  shown  in  the  Anthology  printed  at  Florence  in 
1494.  This  was  a  harder  task  than  designing  types  for  a 
text  to  be  printed  in  Roman  or  Gothic  character.  A  text 
in  Latin  or  Italian  could  be  acceptably  printed  from  a  few 
letters  with  signs  for  punctuation  and  abbreviation,  in  all 
about  sixty  characters;  but  a  text  in  Greek,  with  its  com- 
plex accents  and  ligatures,  according  to  Aldus's  ideas  of 
propriety,  required  about  six  hundred  distinct  characters. 
At  the  outset  he  fairly  reproduced  all  the  accents,  and,  as 
soon  as  he  could,  all  of  the  ligatures.    To  reduce  the  rude 

103 


Aldus' s  wonderful  industry  as  editor 

Greek  characters  of  the  manuscript  copies  to  symmetrical 
proportions,  to  adjust  them  on  squared  bodies  so  that  each 
letter  would  be  in  harmony  when  combined  with  any  other 
letter,  was  a  great  undertaking.  He  did  the  work  fairly, 
but  not  to  his  own  entire  satisfaction.  He  seems  to  have 
been  painfully  conscious  of  the  defects  of  his  early  Greek 
types,  for  his  first  books  convey  the  notion  of  preliminary 
practice  work.  To  him,  the  greatest  defect  was  the  sparsity 
of  ligatures,  which  his  poverty  and  his  novice-like  eagerness 
to  do  quickly  something  of  real  merit  did  not  allow  him  to 
present  with  the  finish  or  in  the  profusion  he  desired. 

The  Aldine  edition,  in  five  volumes  folio,  of  the  works  of 
Aristotle,  was  in  the  largest  and  most  legible  Greek  type 
that  had  then  been  printed.  Its  first  volume,  the  Organon, 
was  published  in  November,  1495.  Its  superiority  was 
acknowledged  by  Greek  scholars,  and  Aldus  was  encouraged 
to  go  on  with  other  large  work.  Before  the  year  1500,  he 
had  printed  editions,  in  folio,  of  Theocritus,  Bion,  Moschus, 
Aristophanes,  Dioscorides,  and  four  more  works  of  Aristotle, 
and  others.  To  produce  these  books,  he  had  to  direct  the 
making  of  three  fonts  of  Greek  and  two  of  Roman  types, 
to  organize  a  great  printing  house,  and  superintend  the  work 
of  many  men,  from  the  composition  of  the  types  to  the  bind- 
ing and  selling  of  the  books.  This  was  work  enough  for  a 
man  of  extraordinary  ability ;  but  Aldus  did  more.  He  pre- 
pared the  copy  for  the  books,  rewrote  two  Greek  grammars 
and  a  new  Greek  lexicon,  read  all  the  proofs,  and  kept  up  an 
extended  correspondence.  The  difficulties  he  met  in  prepar- 
ing the  copy  were  most  discouraging.  In  his  preface  to  the 
Theocritus,  he  says  the  texts  he  consulted  were  so  mutilated 
and  transposed  that  the  author  himself,  if  living,  might  not 
have  been  able  to  unravel  the  tangle.    It  does  not  surprise 

104 


Increase  of  dissatisfacthn  with  big  books 

one,  in  view  of  the  great  work  he  did,  to  read  this  pathetic 
confession  in  the  preface  to  his  Thesaurus  of  1496 :  "In  this 
seventh  year  of  my  self-imposed  task,  I  can  truly  say— yes, 
under  oath  —  that  I  have  not,  dui'ing  these  long  years,  had 
one  hour  of  peaceful  rest." 

Like  other  early  printers,  he  began  to  print  in  the  belief 
that  the  broad-margined  and  large-typed  folio  was  the  true 
model  for  good  books ;  but  he  and  they  soon  discovered  that 
this  form  was  not  readily  acceptable  or  salable.^  There  is  a 
flavor  of  querulousness  in  his  prefaces  before  the  year  1500, 
which  indicates  that  his  books  did  not  find  eager  purchasers. 
To  get  the  buyers  he  desired,  he  must  make  cheaper  books. 
To  do  this,  he  must  make  smaller  types,  and  put  the  matter 
of  a  large  page  on  a  small  leaf.  He  did  not  shrink  from 
the  innovation.  He  was  thoroughly  saturated  with  the 
spirit  of  the  Renaissance  and  was  ready  to  give  up  any 
method  of  book-making  which  hindered  a  wider  spread  of 
knowledge.  When  fairly  awakened  to  the  necessity  for 
changing  the  size  of  popular  books,  he  was  also  prepared  to 
change  the  form  of  the  letters.  Some  printers  at  Rome  and 
at  Venice  had  made  their  earlier  books  popular  by  rejecting 
Gothic  and  printing  them  in  light,  clear,  Roman  letters. 
Why  might  not  he  be  as  successful  with  a  type  of  entirely 
new  shape?    The  model  for  the  desired  form  he  found  in 

'  All  of  Aldus's  earlier  books  had  been  to  give  more  type  and  less  margin.  To 

printed  from  large,  round,  open  types,  with  prove  that  he  was  aggrieved,  he  adds  that 

broad  margins — in  all  points  fair  imitations  with  the  money  paid  for  Aldus's  five  volumes 

of  the  best  manuscripts  of  his  day,  and  in  the  of  Aristotle  he  could  have  bought  ten  of  the 

style  now  commended  by  bibliographers.  But  largest  and  best  manuscripts  in  Latin.  Alas 

he  was  not  fortunate  in  getting  the  approval  for  the  mutabilities  of  fashion  in  book-mak- 

of  all  critics.    One  of  his  literary  friends,  ing!     A  fair  manuscript  of  the  fifteenth 

Urceus  Codrus,  in  a  letter  written  by  him  in  century  is  now  valued  more  than  the  printed 

1498,  said  that  he  was  pleased  with  the  work-  book  of  the  same  period — not  that  the  manu- 

manship  and  the  accuracy  of  the  Aristotle,  script  is  more  legible  or  more  accurate,  but 

but  was  indignant  at  the  price.    He  thought  because  it  is  rarer.    The  broad  margin  which 

Aldus  was  too  prodigal  of  paper,  and  plainly  Codrus  disparaged  is  now  assumed  as  evi- 

said  that  he  would  deal  more  fairly  were  he  dence  of  the  book's  rarity  and  superiority. 

105 


The  beginnings  of  Italic  type 

the  thin,  sharp,  inclined  handwriting  of  the  poet  Petrarch. 
It  was  smaller,  clearer,  simpler  than  the  Gothic,  more  con- 
densed and  paper- saving  than  the  round-faced  Roman.  It 
promised  to  he  the  needed  character  to  present  to  a  reader 
the  most  matter  in  the  least  space.  ^ 

He  took  this  writing  to  Francesco  Raiholini  of  Bologna, 
an  expert  goldsmith  at  Venice,  and  had  him  redraw  the 
characters  in  typographical  proportion,  and  cut  the  punches 
for  the  types  he  wanted.  The  cutting  of  the  new  character 
was  not  so  tedious  as  the  cutting  of  punches  for  Greek,  but 
it  had  its  own  difficulties,  especially  in  the  adjustment  of 
inclined  letters  on  square  bodies.  Labor  would  have  been 
lighter  if  Aldus  had  been  content  with  one  form  only  of  a 
letter.  He  was  not.  The  vitiated  taste  which  induced 
him  to  make  ligatures  for  Greek,  compelled  him  to  conjoin 
two  letters  on  one  body.  His  idea  of  a  popular  character 
was  a  close  imitation  of  stiff  or  set  penmanship,  the  beauty 
of  variety,  not  of  uniformity. 

The  first  work  that  was  printed  in  the  new  character  was 
an  edition  of  Virgil,  in  octavo,^  published  in  April,  1501. 

The  introduction  of  Italic  type  only  is  conceded  to  Aldus, 
but  his  service  in  contributing  another  useful  series  in  the 
small  capitals  that  now  constitute  a  part  of  every  modern  font 
of  Roman  book  type  has  been  overlooked  and  undervalued. 

'The  first  attempt  at  an  imitation  of  the  preceded  Aldus  in  adopting  the  octavo  page 

marked    peculiarities    of   quickly  written  for  printed  books,  but  did  not  succeed  in 

letters  was  made  in  1491  by  Alessandro  making  it  an  established  size.  Horatio 

Paganino,  who  set  up  his  press  first  of  all  at  Brown,  The  Venetian  Printing  Press,  p.  33 

Toscolana  on  the  Lake  of  Garda,  but  sub-  and  note  on  p.  48. 

seqnently  removed  it  to  Venice  and  printed  "It  was  correctly  called  an  octavo,  for  the 

there  as  late  as  1531.    His  earlier  types  leaf  is  one  eighth  of  the  sheet  on  which  it 

were  not  what  we  now  call  Italic.    Brown  was  printed;  but  the  unschooled  reader,  who 

defines  them  as  a  "peculiar  upright  Italic,"  is  more  familiar  with  the  larger  size  (six  by 

having  nothing  in  common  with  the  Aldine  nine  inches)  of  the  modern  octavo,  would 

Italic;   but  the  type  he  used  in  1527,  of  rate  it  as  a  small  eighteen-mo,  for  the  leaf  of 

which  Brown  shows  a  facsimile,  is  slanting  this  Virgil,  slightly  trimmed,  does  not  mea- 

and  like  the  Italic  of  Aldus.    Paganino  had  sure  four  by  six  American  inches. 

106 


Aldine  Italic  was  soon  counterfeited 

The  three  correlated  series  of  tall  capitals,  small  capitals,  and 
lower-case  of  Roman,  with  inclined  capitals  and  lower-case 
of  Italic,  now  provided  by  all  type-founders  for  our  text-type, 
enable  the  printer  to  make  easy  the  changes  in  the  appear- 
ance of  words  that  are  demanded  by  many  writers. 

With  this  Italic  Aldus  printed  his  little  books  almost  to 
the  entire  exclusion  of  Roman  lower-case,  and  his  preference 
for  this  style  was  continued  by  his  sons  when  they  removed 
to  Rome.  Italic  was  a  rival  to  Roman  for  about  a  century 
as  a  proper  text  letter  for  books ;  afterward  it  was  reserved 
for  prefaces  and  introductions;  it  now  meets  steadily  dimin- 
ishing use  as  an  emphasizing  letter  or  in  side-notes. 

The  new  character  was  successful.  By  Italians  it  was 
called  Aldino  or  Aldine,  in  honor  of  the  maker.  In  France, 
where  it  was  counterfeited,  and  where  there  was  a  motive  to 
suppress  the  name  of  the  maker,  it  was  called  Italic,  the 
name  by  which  it  is  now  known  to  French  and  English  read- 
ers. In  a  decree  dated  November  14,  1502,^  the  senate  of 
Venice  gave  Aldus  exclusive  right  to  the  use  of  this  char- 
acter, and  threatened  counterfeiters  with  fines  and  the  con- 
fiscation of  printing  materials.  This  patent,  which  was 
confirmed  by  Pope  Alexander  VI,  on  December  17,  1502, 
was  subsequently  renewed  for  fifteen  years  by  Pope  Julius  II 
in  January,  1513,  and  by  Pope  Leo  X  in  the  next  year. 
These  patents  gave  no  real  protection.  The  punch -cutter, 
Raibolini,  made  duplicates  for  the  rival  printer,  Girolamo 
Soncino,  of  Fano,  which  he  at  once  put  to  use  in  an  imitated 
edition  of  Aldus' s  Virgil,  stealing  in  one  venture  not  only  the 
new  form  of  letter  but  the  editorial  work  of  Aldus.  The 
Giunta,  a  printing  association  at  Florence,  also  made  an 
imitation  of  Italic,  with  which  they  printed  many  books. 

'A  patent  of  July  23,  1500,  is  noticed  in  Didot's  Aide  Manuce,  p.  166, 

107 


Aldine  Italw  is  open  and  readable 


A  printer  at  Lyons  reproduced  this  Virgil,  with  other  Aldine 
classics,  in  a  close  imitation  of  this  Italic,  and  with  the  trade- 
mark of  Aldus,  and  sold  the  hooks  wherever  he  could  as  the 

work  of  Aldus's  presses. 
  Aldus  could  not  pre- 

"EyphdtftUtiier.Kmo  ^m>CCCCC.yi  i-      •  n 

Die  utro.^.MenfK  Stptemhnuexpmfis  knf/li  vent  this  piracy,  nor  could 
mnbirtholomcitr^  the  state  help  him.  He 

Imprint  of  one  of  the  counterfeiters 

at  Lyons  ''The  Honest  Man,  COuld     do    UO    mOrC  thaU 


Bartholomew  Trot ' 


publish  a  protest  and  a 
warning  against  counterfeiters,  which  first  appeared  under 
date  of  March  16,  1503.^ 

The  facsimile  of  a  page  of  Statins,  a  book  (plate  27)  of  the 
same  size  as  Virgil,  and  printed  from  the  same  types  in  1502, 
when  the  types  were  but  slightly  worn,  will  fully  show  the 
peculiarities  of  his  early  Italic.  The  printed  page  has  the 
appearance  of  leaded  types  (or  of  types  separated  by  enlarg- 
ing space  between  the  lines)  but  it  is  not  leaded.  The  char- 
acters were  cast  on  a  body  nearly  as  large  as  that  known 
to  American  and  English  printers  as  12-point,  but  the  short 
letters,  like  the  m  and  a,  which  constitute  the  greater  part  of 
the  font,  are  at  least  two  sizes  smaller  than  is  now  usual 
for  text-types  on  this  body.  The  new  Italic  character  was 
cut  with  plain  intent  to  get  many  letters  in  a  line.  AU  the 

'"When  I  undertook   to  furnish  good  is  inferior  and  has  a  bad  odor.    The  types 

books  to  lovers  of  letters,  I  thought  that  I  do  not  displease  the  eye,  but  have  French 

need  only  see  that  the  books  issued  by  our  peculiarities  and  deformed  capitals.  The 

Academy  sltould  be  as  correct  as  care  could  letters  are  not  connected,  as  mine  are,  in  imi- 

make  them.  .  .  .  But  four  times  within  the  past  tation  of  Avriting."    The  Lyons  type-founder 

seven  years  I  have  had  to  protect  myself  slanted  the  capitals  as  is  now  done, 
against  the  treachery  of  my  workmen.  ...  I       As  Italic  types  did  not  appear  in  print 

have  defeated  their  plots  and  punished  their  before  the  Virgil  of  1501,  Italic  may  not  be 

perfidy.  Yet,  in  the  city  of  Lyons,  books  are  classified  as  of  the  fifteenth  century,  but  it 

fraudulently  printed  under  my  name.   These  was  surely  not  devised  in  haste  with  little 

Ijooks  do  not  contain  the  name  and  place  of  thouglit  and  study.   It  was  prol)ably  planned 

tlie  real  printer,  but  are  made  in  imitation  by  Aldus  and  matured  by  the  puncli-cutter 

of  mine,  so  that  the  unwary  reader  will  be-  for  at  least  a  year  before  tla-  iiriuting  of 

lieve  them  printed  in  Venice.  .  .  .  Their  paper  the  Virgil. 

108 


Plate  2  7 

THEBAIDOS 
T  dlU  id^nti  crudelif  Diua  feueros 
A  duerdt  mltus ■yndntamm  forts  fedehett 
C  ocytvniuxtd' relolufa'q^; uertice  crmes 
L  amyere  fulfureds  ipcrmferat  dn^ibus  und<ts 
I  hretigneiouUldffis<\iCitanord^ris 
T  rilhbM  exilijt  rifts  ■  difcedit  mdTie 

V  ul^s •  oawr/Ji  domn<£  fduet  ■  illd  fertmhr<tf, 
E  t  cnli^nttsaruTnarHmexdmine  cttmpos , 

T  <CB<fr{<e  /jTOfn  pf rif  irremeabile  fort<e  • 
S  enfit  ddeffe  dies  ■  ficeo  nox  ohuia  nimbo 
L  uctntts  turbduit  ec^uos  -frocul  ardms  Atlas 
H  orruit  •  etdubid  ccelum  ceruice  remifit- 
A  rrifitextsmplo  Mdle^  dc  mUerefHr^nf 
N  otum  iterddThebds  nec^;  emtnueloaor  uUcU 
I  t'<^;  jedit'c^,  uids  ■  cogmtdc^;  Tartatd  matudt • 
C  entumilli  djhntesttmbrdbdntord  Cerdft^^e , 
T  urbamnordiriaifitis-Jedetintusdbdfiis 
F  erred  lux  omlis -qtialis  fermbildVhcebcs 
A  trdcid  rubet  drte  color  ■  fuffiifdMemno 
T  enditur'  dc farneglifcit  cHtis  ignemdtro 
O  re mpor  qm  \on^ fitis  ,morbiqi  fkmes'i^; , 
E  t  fopulis  mors  una  uenit.  rigef  horrida  ter^ 

V  alia, etcoeruleiredemt in pefhre nodi- 

A  tropos  hos , at(^i ipfi  nonat  Vro/erpmd  cultus • 
T  mt^minasc^uatit illd  mams -htecignerogtU 
F  ul<^rdt  Jniec  uiuo  mams  a'erd  uerberat  Hydro  • 

V  t^M^dhrupta  cjm pluritms arce  Cytheron 
Ocmrritcalo  ffrd  fibiU ^crine uirenti 

C  on^mimt  figmmttrrts  •  mide  omnis  Ach^i 
O ra  maris Idte ,?elopeid'q; regna rejliltant, 

Aldus  Manutius.   Venice,  1502 
Statius 

12-point. 


Aldus' s  reverence  for  classic  models 

short  letters  are  angular  and  pinched.  Two  letters  are  often 
put  together  in  one  type,  making  the  tied,  condensed  char- 
acter which  Aldus  most  admired.  Tying  and  pinching  were 
overdone,  for,  although  the  Aldine  Italics  are  of  firmer  face, 
and  have  an  open,  leaded  appearance,  they  are  not  so  easily 
read  as  modern  Italics  of  the  same  size.  Over-nice  criticism 
might  note  defects  of  proportion  and  fitting,  hut  every  type- 
founder will  admit  that  for  a  first  experiment  the  Aldine 
Italic  was  well  done. 

The  composition  is  good  in  its  comparative  freedom  from 
the  abbreviations  then  in  common  use,  but  not  so  good,  per- 
haps, in  its  bewildering  use  of  punctuation  points.  One 
marked  peculiarity  is  the  abbreviated  height  of  the  capital 
letters  at  the  beginning  of  each  line.  They  are  little  higher 
than  the  short  letters  of  the  text ;  they  do  not  incline,  but 
stand  up  straight;  they  are  separated  from  the  words  to 
which  they  belong  by  a  wide  space.  No  reason  has  been 
given  for  this  use  of  dwarfed  capitals.  It  is  probable  that 
this  peculiarity  was  caused  by  the  reverence  of  Aldus  for 
classic  models.  He  had  no  scruples  about  altering  the  shapes 
of  Petrarch's  letters  to  suit  the  needs  of  type-founding,  but 
he  did  shrink  from  meddling  with  the  general  form  of  classic 
letters.  To  incline  the  capitals  as  we  do,  and  make  them 
harmonize  with  the  text,  he  may  have  regarded  as  literary 
vandalism.  He  would  as  soon  have  altered  the  words  of 
Cicero  as  the  general  contour  of  Cicero's  letters.  His  title- 
pages  are  in  capitals  smaller  than  those  of  modern  bastard 
titles. 

The  paper  of  this  edition  of  Statins  is  thin,  of  smooth  face, 
and  of  fair  color,  but  it  is  unsized  and  not  fit  for  writing  on 
with  ink.  It  came,  as  did  most  of  his  paper,  fi'om  the  mills 
of  Fabriano,  a  place  that  long  maintained  a  good  reputation 

110 


Aldus  used  sized  and  unsized  paper 


for  paper-making,  for  the  Fabriano  papers  were  honorably 
mentioned  by  a  jury  of  the  World's  Fair,  of  which  Firmin- 
Didot  was  chief,  at  London  in  1851.  For  special  copies, 
Aldus  selected  finer  papers.^ 

Other  printers  have  produced  work  of  merit,  other  type- 
founders have  made  decorative  types  more  or  less  pleasing, 
but  no  printer  or  founder  since  Aldus  has 
invented  even  one  original  style  of  print- 
ing types  which  has  been  adopted  and 
kept  in  use  as  a  standard  text  letter  for 
books. 

This  remarkable  success  was  not  had 
without  effort.  His  first  Greek  types  were 
inferior  and  were  discarded.  The  second 
font  was  better,  but  imperfect.  A  steady 
improvement  may  be  noted  in  the  four 
fonts  that  followed. 

Aldus  was  never  entirely  satisfied  with 
the  first  designs  made  for  his  types ;  every  year  he  made  a 
change  in  some  character.  Type-founding  was  his  ruling 
passion.  He  was  not  successful  with  his  first  Roman  types, 
which  are  inferior  to  those  of  Jenson  and  Ratdolt.  The 


Idte.t  ftatadi-  tu  rha 

7tueU'70LS  -TTMTtlUcif,  Tft 

vrccfo^uvnturklviutt-  us 
rh  o'nt  TTfioiTcuixv  ij^r  Toi 

Trthis'TfO'zafa^uririu  k 

Teui'ojuHfOf  ■S'tazrjxr  }(cu 

itTt  *  •^\»eu97IKUS  A  Kf 

le{urtrcu  kcu  luTctyfafH 

en  •  xvdx'iyus  rlfMiiiit- 
'ict/uv/x- /^iriffi  fi/raSmv  »V 

From  Statius 


^His  friend  Lorenzo,  writing  to  Aldus's 
patroness,  Isabella  d'Este,  tells  her  that  the 
promised  copies  of  Petrarch  and  Ovid  are 
delayed  by  Aldus's  inability  to  get  fine,  pure 
white  linen  paper;  that  only  fifteen  choice 
copies  each  of  these  books  will  be  printed; 
that  the  printed  sheets  of  her  copies  will  be 
carefully  selected  by  Aldus  himself,  and  that 
the  price  of  the  Ovid  will  be  five  ducats. 
These  special  copies,  on  finer  paper,  elegantly 
bound,  and  ever  since  carefully  preserved, 
may  have  led  to  the  error  that  Aldus  always 
printed  on  full-sized  paper.  As  full-sized 
paper  was  expensive,  and  demanded  more 
care  in  printing,  it  was  selected  for  choice 
copies  only. 


The  price  of  the  new  octavos,  sewed,  but 
in  a  plain  wrapper,  was  a  little  less  than  fifty 
cents  in  American  silver.  Compared  with 
the  earlier  editions  in  folio,  they  were  mar- 
vels of  cheapness,  but  the  result  of  sales 
proved  that  they  were  too  cheap  for  the 
time. 

Cheap  as  this  may  seem,  the  book  has 
been  made  at  a  lower  price.  In  1806  Pierre 
Didot,  of  Paris,  j)ublislied  a  Virgil  of  the 
same  size,  the  first  of  a  stereotyped  edition 
of  classic  texts,  ornamented  with  vignettes 
on  copper  by  Andrieux,  and  beautifully 
printed,  for  the  paltry  price  of  one  franc. 
This,  also,  was  an  unprofitable  venture.  The 
cheapening  by  stereotype  was  deceptive. 


Ill 


The  Hypnerotornachia  of  Aldus 


Aldus  Manutius.   Venice,  1499 
Hypnerotomacliia  Polipliili 


second  font  was  worse.  The  third,  designed  by  Raibolini,  has 
remarkable  beauty/  The  fourth  was  bad;  the  fifth  very  good. 
Of  Italic  he  made  but  two  sizes.  The  type  of  the  Virgil  was 
the  size  first  made  and  the  one  which  was  most  used.  It  is 
here  shown  in  plate  27.  A  smaller  size  was  afterward  made 
for  notes.  One  line  of  a  larger  size  with  slanted  capitals 
appears  in  plate  28. 

Aldus  did  not  excel  in  everything.  His  presswork,  always 
good,  is  not  superior  to  that  of  Jenson,  nor  of  Renner  and 

'Aldus's  types  were  extravn>,'antly  praised  practical  for  this  folly.    His  types,  like  those 

by  his  admirers.     Some  said,  in  all  serious-  of  his  contemporaries,  were  of  lead  and  tin, 

ness,  that  their  beauty  was  owing  to  the  silver  with  possibly  a  little  antimony.     In  speak- 

of  wliich  they  were  made.    They  had  noted  ing  of  his  printed  books,  which  were  in  inii- 

the  white,  silvery  appearance  of  his  newly  tation  of  handwriting,  Aldus  says  that  they 

cast  types,  and  had  conchulcd  ihat  tlicy  were  were  made  "with  a  hand  of  tin"— meaning 

made  of  that  precious  metal.    Aldus  was  too  that  the  types  were  largely  composed  of  tin. 

112 


The  device  of  Aldus 

Torresano.  His  skill  in  the  printing  of  woodcuts,  and  even  in 
showing  to  advantage  the  beauty  and  delicacy  of  well-cut 
type,  was  inferior  to  that  shown  by  the  printers,  of  illustrated 
missals  and  books  of  devotion.  Aldus  had  no  enthusiasm  for 
this  department  of  printing.  His  first  experiment  in  this 
difficult  field  was  his  last.  This  experimental  book,  the 
Reveries  of  Polyphilus,  a  stout  folio  of  two  hundred  and 
thirty-four  leaves,  fully  illustrated  with  designs  from  an 
unknown  but  able  master,  possibly  Benedetto  Mantegna, 
was  published  in  December,  1499.  The  amatory  sentiment 
is  extravagant,  yet  that  is  subordinate  to  the  author's  desire 
to  display  his  knowledge  of  art  and  mythology. 

Among  the  illustrations  of  this  book  is  one  of  a  dolphin 
twining  about  an  anchor.  It  pleased  Aldus,  who  at  once 
adopted  it  as  his  trade-mark,  showing  it  for  the  first  time 
in  his  edition  of  Dante  of 


1502,  and  afterward  in  many 
fine  books.  Erasmus,  explain- 
ing the  device,  with  the  motto 
(added  subsequently)  Festina 
lente,  says  the  dolphin  signified 
speed,  the  anchor  deliberation, 
and  was  an  exemplification  of 
the  aphorism,  "Make  haste 
slowly."  This  illustration  is 
taken  literally,  faults  and  all. 


from  the   Statins   of  1502. 

Four  variations  of  this  design  were  afterward  made;  two 
are  more  ornate,  but  none  is  better  than  this. 

Aldus  died  in  1515  in  comparative  poverty.  He  had 
the  money-getting  but  not  the  money -keeping  faculty. 
Whether  he  sold  folios  at  high  price,  or  octavos  at  low 

113 


The  Aldim  house  had  worthy  smcessors 

price,  the  result  was  the  same.  Directly  or  indirectly,  he 
gave  to  the  book  buyer  quite  as  much  as  he  received. 

In  1529  Andrew  Torresano  died.  His  sons  and  those  of 
Aldus  continued  the  work  of  their  fathers,  but  did  not  agree, 
and  pubhshed  few  books.  In  1540  the  sons  of  Torresano 
withdrew;  the  books  of  the  house  after  this  date  bear  the 
imprint  of  Aldus's  sons.  Paul  Manutius,  the  youngest,  then 
twenty-eight  years  old,  was  manager.  He  drew  about  him 
many  learned  men,  and  kept  the  favor  of  eminent  Italian 
ecclesiastics  and  princes.  He  reopened  the  Academy,  and 
with  its  aid  published  valuable  books.  But  wars  and  the 
waning  commercial  prosperity  of  Venice  caused  his  removal 
to  Rome,  where  he  was  cordially  received  and  provided  for  by 
Pope  Pius  IV.  


I<rniii  Roiiouard  s  Animlcs  dc  rimiiriuierio 
des  Aide 


114 


Plate  28 


PRAESTANTI.  VIRO 

IVRIS.VTRIVSQJ^E.  SIN 
gulari  cognitioneornato 

FRANCISCO.  MORANDO 

Aldus  Manutius  FauUi  F 

S.    p.  D 

VMC^VAM  eorum  inftitu- 
^     turn  probaui,quieo  animo  fe 
ad  litteras  conferunt,ur,prae 
tcr  fuam  utilitatem ,  nihil  cu- 
rent .  quo  enim  pluribus  communica- 
tur,  eo  nobilior  eft  Virtus.  Accedit  il- 
lud^  quod  fama  nominis  noftri  &  pro- 
pagatur  fcriptis  ^  &  perpetuo  cuftodi- 
tur :  qui  eft  uberrimus ,  acpraeftantifll- 
mus  litterarum  frud:us.  quamobrcm 
eo  Temper  cogitationes  meae  fpeda- 
runt ,  ut  ea  praeftare  poftem ,  quae  ftu- 
diofis  omnibus  utilitatem  aliquamaf- 
ferrent,  meumq.  nomen  pofteris  etiam 
proderent.  in  quo  Aui  mei ,  Parentisq 
ueftigia  cum  fequanfi  me  dignum  utro- 
A    2  que 

Paul  Manutius.    Venice,  1566 
Preface  to  Orthograpliise  Ratio 

14-pomt 


Plate  29 

couerfus  continue  dimicas^ad  extrcmu  in  facie  corruit 
Erat  fere  fexta  diei  bora^cum  Tbeias  occabuit  Gotbi 
tame  ob  regis  mortem  nequa^  deterriti  ufgp  ad  noAe 
pagnaaerunt^nung^  pedem  referentes-  fadis  denig^  te 
nebris  pugna  ceflauit-cu  primo  folfs  ortu  cepta  fuiffet 
Ea  noibc  utrigp  armati  fleterut^utg^  dies  apparait  rur/ 
fus  in  pugnam  reditum  eft  etlorgp  ad  folis  occafu  cu 
magna  ftrageutriufgp  partis  dimicatu*  Tandem  uero 
Gotbi  ad  Narfetemoratonbus  mifTis  aelle  fe  italia  ex 
cedere  obtulcpunt^fi  incolumes  abire  afportare^  fua 
permittantur-Sin  bec  Hbi  non  .pmittat  Narfes^g,  din 
uiuant^tam  diii  pungnare  non  defituros  efie  'Que  c5 
itellexiifct  Narfes ;n  cofilio  re  difcuflTa^  illis  ^mittere 
decreait-nc  aduerfus  difj^atos  bominesmagno  fuoip 
detrimento  uidor/am  adiplfcattir  •  Inter  bec  ad  millc 
equitcs  ex  Gotboip  caftris  aafugerat  magnify  it  in  en/ 
bus  papiam^et  alia  trafpadum  oppida  petierut  'Relig, 
aut  redere  cum  ISIarfete  icfto  fua  priuatim  afportantes 
Italia  exccdere^ac  nu^  aduerfus  K-omanu  imperium 
bellugererepromireruntlibertate  tamen  retenta  fine 
ulla  Romani  imperii  fabiecilioe  Quofacilo  Cumas  ac 
cetera^u^  fujperaC  oppida  Narfes  recepit^Finifg^  tult 
anni  Decimiodtaui  bnius  belli 

Hunc  Iibellum  Emilianus  de  Orfmis  Fulginas 
SC  fobannes  Numeiftertbeutunicus:  eiul^fbtii 
fcliciter  imprefTerunt  Fulgineiin  domoeiufde 
Emiliani  anno  domini  A^iLIefimoquadringete/' 
nmofeptwagefimo  feliciteV 

Jolin  Numeister.    Folig-no,  1470 
Aretinus:  De  Bello  Italico 

18  i^oint 


TYPES  OF  OTHER  CITIES 


JOHN  NUMEISTER 


John  NumeiSTER  apparently  obtained  his  knowledge  of 
typography  in  the  printing  house  of  Gutenberg  and  Fust,  for 
he  was  called  as  a  witness  in  their  suit  at  law  at  Mainz  in 
1455,  but  it  is  not  known  how  or  where  he  was  employed 
after  the  dispersion  of  printers  from  that  city  in  1462.  In 
1470  the  book  De  Bello  Italico  was  printed  at  Foligno  in 
northern  Italy,  and  it  says  in  its  colophon  that  it  was 
"felicitously  printed  by  Emilianus  de  Orsinis  of  Foligno, 
Johannes  Numeister  of  Germany  and  his  associates."  ^ 

In  1480  Numeister  was  at  Albi,  Languedoc,  France,  where 
he  practised  printing  for  four  years,  making  use  of  a  Black- 
letter  type  of  the  style  used  in  the  Bible  of  Forty-two  Lines. 
In  1485  he  appears  as  a  master  printer  in  Lyons,  France, 
where  he  produced  three  books  of  merit,  but  he  was  not  a 
successful  printer  and  soon  gave  up  its  practice.  In  the 
city  records  he  is  registered  in  1507  as  out  of  business  and 
poor.    The  date  of  his  death  is  unknown." 

^  Claudiii  specifies  these  associates :  John  indehted  for  this  information,  says  that  Nu- 

Ambrecht,  who  set  the  types;  Kraft,  who  at-  meister  may  liave  been  at  Eome  with  Ulric 

tended  to  type-making;  and  Stephan,  the  Hahu,  and  their  independent  nse  of  similar 

inventor  of  a  new  process  for  type-founding,  designs  for  the  iUustrations  of  their  mutual 

With  the  types  so  made  were  also  then  publication  of  The  Meditations  of  Turrecre- 

printed  Ciceronis  Epistolas  Familiares  and  mata  (first  printed  by  Hahn  and  afterward  by 

the  first  edition  of  La  Divina  Commedia  di  Numeister)  leads  to  this  belief.  Numeister's 

Dante,  1472.  The  types  made  for  these  books  ventures  in  printing  and  publication  with 

are  on  18-point  body,  closely  fitted,  but  the  Orsinis  and  other  associates  at  Foligno  were 

matrices  were  inexactly  justified  to  one  an-  not  successful,  for  he  returned  to  Mainz  in 

other  and  to  the  mold.    It  was  not  a  pleasing  1479.    Orsinis  went  to  Kome  in  1474,  and 

letter  to  Italian  readers,  and  the  Foligno  apparently  had  no  further  connection  with 

printing  house  made  no  books  after  1472.  typography.     The  facsimile  (plate  29)  on 

^Claudin,  to  whose  The  Peregrinations  of  page  116  is  copied  from  Hawkins's  Titles  of 

J.  Neumeister,  Paris,  8vo,  1880, 1  am  largely  the  First  Books,  4to,  New  York,  1884. 

117 


Plate  30 

/||Onamfror§obrcm  ne^pacrfstufnecp 
* ^  f  filu  fimile  ^cq  beas  L j^fides .Non  tni:^ 
I^y hcla^  fili9  nccp  ncptolomi  p?  cs .  Q^od  r 
inatrc  tuam  et  vxore  multj  ficuU's  affi'rmaffc 
aiuntctproptcrea  maxima  laude  9rccutas. 
Vnu  cni  et  hoc  coqi.  c  numero  e  q  laudc  mcrct 
lit  tncmi'ni  maxime  bis  quos  noui9  meti'amur 

(^11  On  peccare  metito  fortaffe  et  I'ute  ipo  r 
JL  J  del  exiftimat.  peccare  jbo^ct  fdcco  poft 
bac  cautiorc  fieri  bois  c.  Qui  axic  nta^  cu  pec 
cat  nc^  cu  i  adiSfaj  icidit  fortuna  fibf  cauet . 
Nefcio  an  alius  exiftfmarf  poffi't  5  oio  mal9 
Turpiffimu  igit  e  adbuc  cnfra  ^n9  accede 
riTUS  eum  qui  ftultiac  cxcmplu^  facfhis  fit  nc 
fua  quidctn  ipfius  calamitate  bonum  fieri 

^  1  ErCuafi  fumus  la  ^ciu  nullam  abftc  liu 
t<  jcia  accepiffe  ?  fi  !  fingulis  accufatioib? 
no  leui  t  ctnine  fis  deprebenC?.  S5  qle  te  effc 
vellem9  te^  erga  nos  effe  decuit  tale  arbitti 
fumus  et  accuCantiu  crfmina  co  ^  timui'mus 
deprebendc  6  te  jbitatc  falfa  duxim^-Certo 
tame  fcias  5  nihil  aliquando  mali  comiTerut 
cu  lUata  metuuc  crinliiiaicos  foituneini^tate 
vifos  noiniuria  punfri.Cura  igit  ne  aut  mo 
resqtcinfmicuarguac  aut  fortuna  exibeas 


Sixtns  Riessing-er.    Naples,  1471 
Phalaridis  Epistolae 

15-polnt 


SIXTUS  RIESSINGER 


Printing  was  introduced  to  Naples  in  1471  by  Sixtus 
Riessinger,  a  priest  from  Strasburg.  Nearly  twenty  books 
are  attributed  to  him  in  Naples  before  1481.  Most  of  them 
are  in  Roman  letter,  undated,  and  in  folio,  but  the  facsimile 
here  presented,  Phalaridis  Epistolse,  is  a  small  quarto,  with 
leaves  6x82  inches.^ 

It  is  boldly  printed  in  a  type  of  15 -point  on  thick  paper. 
It  has  no  hyphens  to  show  broken  words,  but  abounds  in 
abbreviations  and  accents.  The  type-founding  is  inferior; 
the  types  are  not  in  line  and  show  amateur  workmanship 
everywhere.  It  has  no  running  title,  nor  paging  figures, 
nor  signatures,  but  it  has  many  paragraphs,  widely  separated 
by  white  space.  Initial  letters  for  these  paragraphs  have 
been  painted  in  red,  but  in  some  other  features  it  deviates 
from  the  conventional  monastic  style  of  book-making. 

King  Ferdinand  held  Riessinger  in  high  favor  and  wished 
to  attach  him  to  Naples.  He  would  have  made  him  a 
bishop  and  invested  him  with  other  ecclesiastical  dignities, 
but  Riessinger  left  Naples  in  1480  and  went  to  Rome. 

Arnold  of  Brussels  began  in  1472  to  print  at  Naples; 
yet  Matthias  Moravus  from  Olmtitz  has  distinction  as  the 
most  important  printer  in  that  city  between  the  years  1475 
and  1491,  for  Naples  was  never  prominent  for  making  or 
selling  books.  The  product  of  the  Moravus  Press  is  recorded 
as  about  thirty-five  books. 

*  This  book  of  48  leaves  does  not  accord  lowing  numbers  that  this  Phalaridis  Epistolae 

exactly  with  the  description  given  in  mini-  was  twice  printed  in  two  editions  by  Ries- 

ber  12,882  of  Hain,  who  ascribes  it  to  singer.    The  book  before  me  comes  certified 

Guldinbeck.    But  Hain  concedes  in  twofol-  as  the  work  of  Riessinger,  Naples,  1471. 

119 


Plate  31 


(ahurc:rtpoicol  pcftcllo.ct  terzameie 
lofpazaiio  colefcopcrficbc  dan  quefn  fc 
gni  quafi  pcultiuameto  delli  diinldio  ft 
luao  no  ui  pofTa  entrarc.-pcbc  glialbcri 
fono  tagliari  et  potati  col  fcrroict  il  far 
ro  no  fi  pcfta  faza  il  pcftcllo.  ct  Ic  biadc 
no  firaunano  laza  la  granata.Daquc 
fic  n-c  cofc  dicono  cere  appellate  >tre  dii 
I  nterddone  daltagliarc  dela  fccburc.  Pi 
lino  dal  peftello :  Deucrra  dalle  granare 
iquali  dii  guardanti  cbtxo  alia  forza  del 
dio  SiIuano:e  coferuata  la  dona  i  parto 
ct  cod  cbno  alia  crudelta  deldio  noceuo 
Ic  no  uanrbc  la  cuftodia  ddli  buoi  fcno 
foflcro  pccbi  o  u&o  piu  cotra  uno  et  fe 
no  repugniafTcro  allui  afpro  brurro  et 
orribili:  come  feluatico.fi  come  c6  cotra 
ni  fegm  diculture.Oreequefta  la  inocc 
da  delli  dii:c  quefta  la  cocoidia^  or  Ton 
quefti  lidii  faluteuole  dcllc  cittade:  piu 
dafcbennrc  cbe  ligiuocbi  ndli  tlieatn^ 
Quado  il  malcbio  et  la  fcia  IT  cogiiigo 
no  mi  fipone  ildio  Giugarino:bene  c6 
pomfi  quefto:  e  (Imcna  lamoglic  acala 
il  dio  Domiduco.Ttado  ella  incafa  ildio 
Doiao.pcr  cbe  fna  colmarito  ladea  M  a 
tuma.Orcbe  piu  rincbiedc^Perdonifi  a 
la  uergognia  buaiia:faaa  laltre  cofe  la 
cocupifaenzadellacame  etdcl  fanguc 
nellecto  et  nclluogo  fegretororpcbc  fcii 
pieillecto  di  turba  didii:quado  fcnc  pto 
no  lifcruidore  dclle  nozze:etpofempic 
illecfo  diqucfti  dii.-no  pcbe  plaloreprd'e 
tia  fiapefata  maggior  cura  delloncftadc 
ma  addo  cbe  piu  agicuotmcre  fia  tolta 
la  uirginita  alia  feia  inferma dd  fexo  et 
paurofa  ddla  noui  ta  paiuto  delli  dii  ad 
corre  la  dea  Vcrginenfeiet  lldio  padre: 
Subigo.et  ladea  madre  Prcma:et  la  dea 
Partundatet  V  enerc  et  Pnapo.Or  cbe 
cdo.fe  alpoftufo  luomo  faticatefi  i  quel 
lopera  couenia  efTere  aiutato  dalli  dii  or 
nobafterebbe  alcuno  unfoloroucro  alcu 
na  una  et  no  piu.  Or  farebbe  poca  Tola 
Venere  laquali  po  fi  cbiama  cofirp  cbe 
faza  lafua  poteza  lafcia  no  (i  puo  fuer 
2inare:feglibu6i  ano  puto  difacdapiu 


cbe  no  anno  lidii  :omd  quado  credono 
cotari  du  mafcbi  et  fcie  ecre  pfenh  et  fo 
praftanri  aqud  fartoifiuergogniano  ra 
to:cbe  luomo  meno  fi  comuoua  et  la  fe 
mma  piu  rcfifta.Et  derto  feuc  pfcnte  la 
dea  uirgincnfeprope  ilfigillo  uirgmalc 
ctieueiTdio  fubigo  pfubgiugare  etfot 
to  metere  lamoglie  almanto.etfeue  lade 
a  Prema  p  pmerla  cbe  no  fi  comuoua'f 
Or  ladea  Pa^tunda  cbcui  fa  iui  <'uergo 
gnifiuadafe  fuon.facciaqualcbi  cofa 
ilmanto.Molto  edifonefta  cofa  cbcquel 
lo  pcbe  e  cbiamata  ladea  partuda  aoe  il 
forarenlfacaa  altro  cbdmanto.Ma  for 
fe  po  fdafcia  ftare  incafa  pcbe  dia  edea: 
ct  no  dio.  po  cbe  fc  foflc  mafcbio  et  cbi 
aniaflcfj  ildio  piudo:piu  tofto  bifognie 
rebbealmanto  dichiamare  altro  aiutori 
o  cotra  dilui  p  faluare  loneftade  ddamo 
glic:cbc  nobilbgnia  alia  dona  iparto  c6 
traldio  Siluano.Mapcbe  dico  lo  quefto 
codofiacofa  cbcui  fia  ancbePriapo  gra 
diffimo  mafcbio  :fopra  ilcui  grandiffio 
ct  difonefrifTimo  falano  do  e  panno  in 
hiogo  di  bracbe  fi  faacua  fcdere  lafpofa 
aiifaza  bonefti(Tima:ct  nligiofifl'ima: 
di  buonedoneet  matrone.Vadano  an 
cora  (Torzanfi  c6  ogni  fottilita  quafi  di 
ftinguaela  tbeologiaauile  dallafauo 
lofa :  Ic  cirra  ddli  ihearri  :gli  tcmpli  dale 
cafe  facnicbe.lcfacre  ddli  ponrifid  dalli 
ucrfi  dalli  pocn  Ic  cofe  boneftc  dale  brut 
te  icucrad  dalle  fallaci.lcgrauc  dalle  leg 
gieri:lutili  dalle  giullarefcbe.etle  cofe  da 
apetire  dale  cofc  dafcbifare.  J  ntcndiam© 
bene  qudlo  cbe  fanno.  ben  conofcono 
cbe  qudla  theatrica  et  fauolofa  tbeolo 
giadifdcndedaqueftaciuile:  et  rifpon 
ddidelli  ucrfi  ddli  Pocticome  limbal 
zaffe  ncllo  fpecbio.  Etpero  dicbiara 
ta  quefta.  la  quale  nonbanno  ardire 
di  condamnarc  ;  qudla  cbe  c  fua  ira 
magine.ct  afTimiglialefi  riprcndcndo 
CI  biafimaado  piu  liberamente .  Si  cbe 
queglt.-cbc  intctidono  quello  cbe  efli 
uogliono  dire  biafimino  ancbe  quefta 
auilc.ddla  quale  la  fauolofa  eimmagi 


Antonio  Mlscomini.    Florence,  c.  1483 
S.  Agostino :  de  la  Citta  di  Deo 

ll-point 


ANTONIO  MISCOMINI 


Italian  birth  and  training  are  indicated  by  this  name. 
When  and  where  Miscomini  acquired  the  ability  that  enabled 
him  to  establish  and  direct  a  printing  house  in  Florence  is 
not  on  record,  but  he  soon  proved  an  efficient  manager.  He 
began  his  work  as  printer  at  Venice  in  1472  with  two  part- 
ners or  financial  associates.  Four  years  afterward  he  was 
continuing  this  business  in  the  same  city,  but  without  part- 
ners. Neither  his  name  nor  those  of  his  partners  appear  in 
the  books  that  he  is  known  to  have  printed  at  Venice.  In 
1481  he  removed  his  printing  house  to  Florence,  where  he 
printed  some  sixty  books  of  value  during  the  following  thir- 
teen years.  Apparently  he  had  close  relations  in  business 
with  the  Ripoli  Press,  and  with  booksellers  of  Florence,  who 
often  suppressed  the  names  of  the  printers. 

This  facsimile  of  Miscomini's  type  and  page  is  from  a  rare 
first  Italian  edition  of  St.  Augustine's  City  of  God.^  The  book 
does  not  give  the  name,  date,  or  place  of  its  printer,  but 
Proctor  decides  "at  Florence,  not  after  1483."  The  type 
of  this  book  of  three  hundred  and  twenty-four  leaves  is  a 
compressed  Roman  of  firm  face  on  1 1 -point  body,  apparently 
intended  to  imitate  the  firmness  of  contemporary  devotional 
works  in  Black-letter.^  The  composition  and  press  work  are 
of  merit.  They  reveal  the  increasing  desire  of  readers  for 
simplicity  and  more  compactness  in  print. 

'It  has  signatures,  but  no  catchwords  or  ^Proctor  has  identified  five  distinct  faces 

running  titles.    Paper  is  sized  and  of  fair  of  type  in  his  collection  of  Miscomini's 

color.     Chapters  have  large  pen-made  ini-  books,  but  this  St.  Augustine  is  printed 

tials  at  appropriate  headings.    Hyphens  at  with  one  face  only.    Capital  letters  in  a  mass 

the  end  of  lines  to  indicate  a  divided  word  appear  only  in  the  Deo  Gratias  on  the  last 

are  rare,  but  Arabic  figures  for  paging  are  used.  page. 

121 


Plate  32 

PIISECVNDI  PONT-MAX.  DE  CONVEN 

TV  MANTVANO  EPISTOLA  PRIMA. 

IVSEPISCOPVS  SERVVS  SER 
uorutn  del  uniuerfis  &  finguhs  Cbnfti  fideli 
bus  has  nofh-as  litteras  infpecfhii'is  falutem  6C 
apoftolica  benedi(itionem.Vocauit  nos  pius  & 
tniTericors  deus  ad  facram  beati  Petn  fedem: 
lucef^j  dilecftiflimi  filii  fui  domini  noftri  Ibe 
fu  cbrifti  dcbilibus  bumeris  noftns  comiTit  in 
tcms:pafturam  gfegi's  fui  credidit;  &  alto  fludluantem  pelago 
fidelis  populi  rcgere  nauicula  lufTit  .Gram's  baec  nobis  farcma 
eft  :  nec  noftrae  ui'res  funt :  quae  tanti  regiminis  ferre  molem 
fufficiancPi-ocellofum  eft  ualde  mare  atq?  mfeftumrper  quod 
nobis  nauigandum  eft.Nutat  &  fatifat  carina:  qua  uebimur. 
Trepidant  ac  deficiunt  remiges  ;  uentique  aduerfi  funt:  8i.  in 
Ijornda  tempeftate  lacllamur  ♦  Nam  pofteaquam  Conftantino 
pnnape  pax  reddita  eft  ecclefii'smunquam  dommici  gregis'ea 
prefTura  fuic:quam  modo  cernimusmunquam  adeo  coartatos 
cattbolicae  fideilimites  fupior  aetas  uidit.  Exiit  olim  in  omnc 
terram  Tonus  apoftolorum:  dC  in  fines  orbi's  terrae  uerba  eoril. 
Subiecerunt  omnes  reges  terrae:omnes  tribusromnes  populi 
colla  fua  Cbrifto  domino:  dC  falutan's  fidei  facramentis  imbu 
ti  gloria  i  excelfis  deo  per  unigenitum  filium  eius;&  in  terns 
pacem  bonae  uoluntatis  bominibus  acclamauere  .  Surrexit  dc 
inde  annos  lam  fupra  ocJlmgentos  pfeudo  propbeta  Mabume 
tes  m  Arabia: qui  blafpbemas  facratiYTimam  trinitatem:  non 
folum  contnbules  fuos  :  fed  aegy^ptios  atqj  omnem  S^n'am  4 
uera    ortbodoxa  religione  auertit:officinam  noftrae  falutis  , 
m  qua  deus  nofter  pro  noftra  redemptione  pretiofum  (angui 
nem  fudit:barbarus  boftis  inuarit:le<flum  ilium  purpureum 
6i  fuauiflimis  flagrantem  odoribus  ^  in  quo  propter  nos  uita 
noftra  obdormiuit  in  domino  rfpurciflimae  farrbaceno^  man^ 

a  1 

Antonio  Zarotto.   Milan,  1481 
Aeneas  Sylvius :  de  Conventu  Mantuano 

16-point 


ANTONIO  ZAROTTO 


Printing  in  Italy  had  attractions  for  the  enterprising  in 
business  as  well  as  for  the  studious,  and  promised  to  be  a 
profitable  industry  to  Filippo  de  Lavagna,  an  educated  and 
prosperous  citizen  of  Milan,  who  in  1470  induced  Antonio 
Zarotto  of  Parma  to  leave  that  city  and  establish  a  printing 
house  in  Milan,  where  there  were  then  one  or  two  master 
printers  doing  petty  work.  It  is  not  known  when  or  where 
Zarotto  acquired  his  knowledge  of  typography,  but  he  im- 
pressed his  associates  with  the  belief  that  it  had  been 
acquired  by  extended  practice  in  the  different  departments 
of  designing,  engraving,  and  type-making. 

The  books  published  by  Lavagna  and  Zarotto  before  1472 
appeared  as  edited  or  made  by  Lavagna.  Zarotto' s  name 
was  suppressed.  As  these  books  had  been  planned  and  paid 
for  by  Lavagna,  he  was  then  and  afterward  supposed  to  be 
the  printer,  although  his  contribution  to  the  enterprise  was 
that  of  owner  of  the  plant,  editor,  and  publisher. 

The  new  printing  house  prospered,  but  Zarotto  was  not 
content  with  a  subordinate  position  and  the  suppression  of 
his  name  as  printer.  He  aspired  to  leadership  and  with  that 
purpose  organized  a  joint- stock  printing  company  in  1472, 
which  began  with  five  and  soon  after  was  enlarged  to  seven 
associates.  An  abstract  of  the  articles  of  agreement  then 
made,  which  gives  us  an  insight  into  the  business  usages  of 
that  period,  will  be  found  on  page  186  of  this  book. 

In  this  agreement  Zarotto  promised  to  supply  the  house 
with  all  the  printing  types  it  might  need,  whether  of  Roman, 

123 


LavagnoHs  assodatim  with  Valdarfer 

Gothic,  or  Greek,  and  to  compound  all  the  printing  ink 
required.  The  other  partners  undertook  to  find  constant 
employment  for  seven  hand  presses.  This  partnership  came 
to  its  end  in  1475,  Zarotto  retaining  possession  of  the  print- 
ing plant  as  had  been  agreed.  Books  bearing  Zarotto's 
name  in  the  colophon  are  abundant  after  1472.  Proctor 
specifies  nine  faces  of  type  and  Burger  names  one  hundred 
and  twenty-two  books  as  the  product  of  his  press  before  the 
year  1495.  Zarotto  continued  to  print  in  Milan  until  1514, 
which  is  understood  to  be  the  date  of  his  death. 

The  facsimile  on  a  preceding  page  of  Zarotto's  Roman 
type  on  16-point  body  does  not  carry  with  it  any  internal 
evidence  of  his  superiority  as  a  designer  of  type.  It  is 
a  strong  and  readable  letter,  of  firm  face  but  without  the 
minor  graces  then  in  use  by  some  printers  of  Venice.  It 
shows  few  points  of  punctuation;  the  hyphen  is  not  used  at 
all  for  broken  words  at  ends  of  lines.  It  is  to  Zarotto's 
credit  that  he  made  few  accents  and  abbreviations;  but 
he  thin- spaced  words  according  to  usages  then  prevailing. 
He  followed  Jenson  in  placing  the  dot  obliquely  over  the  i; 
he  made  V  serve  for  U  in  capitals,  according  to  classical 
usage,  while  u  regularly  appears  in  his  lower-case  series  for 
both  u  and  y} 

Lavagna's  purpose  to  publish  books  was  not  defeated  by 
the  withdrawal  of  Zarotto.  Christopher  Valdarfer,  a  master 
printer  at  Venice  in  1471,  was  induced  by  Lavagna  to 
transfer  his  plant  to  Milan  in  1472,  for  Lavagna  proposed 
with  other  booksellers  of  Milan  to  provide  Valdarfer  with 
work  enough  in  1473  to  keep  two  presses  in  steady  employ- 
ment. The  following  facsimile  is  from  a  book  of  about  1476. 

'The  Sforziada  (plate  2)  sliows  aiiotlier  print  and  illumination  within  the  limit  of 
face  of  the  Zarotto  type,  but  it  has  been  the  leaf.  It  is  a  plain  and  readable  type, 
reduced  a  trifle  in  the  facsimile  to  keep    but  not  notable  for  good  form. 

124 


Plate  33 


Adi'uro  te  quicunow  hos  fcnpferis  Iibros  per  dominu  Icfum 
chnftum  dc  glon'ofum  eius  aduentum:  m  quo  ucnict  ludicare 
uiuos  &  mortuos :  ut  coferas:quod  IcripfenstS^  emendes  ad 
exemplana  ta:de  quibus  fcnplens  dihgenter :  Qihoc  admra 
tionis  genus  fimibter  tralcribas:  dc  transferas  I  eum  codicem 
quemdefcnpferis  • 

Incipit  liber  cronicfl^Euxebn  Hieronymi  cum  fuperadditis 
dm  hieronj^mi  dC  Profpen.PrsEfatio  Hierony^mi  ♦ 

Vfebius  Hieronymus  Vincentio  Si  Galh'cno 
fuisfalutem .  Vetus  ifte  difertorum  mos  fuit:  ut 
cxercendicaufaingenn  grxcos  Iibros  latino  fer 
mone  abfoluerenttS^  quod  plus  m  fe  diff/cultatis 
babet:poemata  illuftnum  uirc^  addita  merri  necelTitare  traf 
ferrent :  unde  dC  nofler  Tullms  Platonis  inregros  libros  ad 
uerbumrterpreratus  efb:  Et  cu  lam  Aratum  romanum  bcxa 
metnsuerfibus  edidiffet :  in  Xencphocis  acbonomico  lufit: 
In  quo  opere  ita  fxpe  aureuillud  flumen  cloqueniix  qbufda 
fcabns  &turbulentis  obicibus  retardaturtut  qunntcrprerata 
nerciut:a  Cicerone  didla  non  credant » Difficile  eft  enim  alic 
nas  lineas  in(equcntem:non  ali'cubi  incidere  arduum :  ut  qua? 
in  aliena  lingua  bene  dida  flint  eundem  dccore  m  iraflatione 
coferuent ,  Si'gnificatum  eft  ali'quiduniusuerbi  proprietate. 
nonhabeo  meum:quoidefFeram:&dum  qua:roimpIerc  fen 
tentiam ;  logo  ambitu  uix  breuis  wx  fpatia  cofumo.  A  cccdut 
hypcrbato^  anfradus:di(TimiIicudines  cafuu:  uarietates  fi'gu 
rarumtipfum  poftremo  (uuidc  ut  ira  dica  uernaculum  linguae 
genus  fi  ad  ucrbum  interpretatur :  abfurde  rcfonat .  Si  cb 
necefTitate  aliqd  in  ordinetin  fermone  mutauerotab  I'nterpre 
tis  uidebor  officio  reccfTifreJtaq^  mi  Vincenti  carifTime  dC  tu 
Galli'ene  ps  animz  mea:  obfecro :  utquidqd  hoc  tumultuarii 
open's  e  amico^  non  ludicu  ammo  relegatis,  Prefertim  cu  dC 
notan'o  ut  fcitis  uclocifTime  dicflaucrim:  &  difficultate  rei  ctia 
dmino^  uoluminum  inftrumeta  teftetur :  qux  a  feptuaginta 
intcrpretibus  cdita  no  eunde  fapore  in  gra:co  fermone  cufto 


Filippo  de  Lavagna.    Milan,  c.  1476 
Eusebius,  annotated  by  Hieronymus 

15-point 


Plate  34 


cbe  fia  legato  con  filo  ucrgmc  ^  poflo  adoITo 
da  fanaullo  uergine  o  cbe  fia  kripto  o  pofto 
piu  in  uno  tepo  cbe  in  uno  alcro  o  quado  dice 
cbi  la  porta  no  puo  perire  in  acqua  ne  in  fuo^ 
cbo  Sc  fimile  cofe  fonoillecit£e  captiue  &  fi  fi 
^bbonoarderc  i^JDh^ctnitionQ  de  tept 
djOb&uationc  de  tepi  n5  fi  debbono  fare 
uanamete  come  e  di  guardarfi  di  no  principi 
are  una  cofa  piu  in  uno  di  cbe  in  uno  altro  p 
cbe  fia  di  otiacbo  5c  diffefo  o  calem  di  gmnu  • 
0  fare  alcuna  cofa  quel  di  p  cbe  e  capo  dano  o 
el  di  di  fandlo  giouanni  decollato  o  altri  di  < 
Tucte  quefte  fupftitione  fono  peccato  •  Et 
quando  la  udito  da  pfone  a  cbi  ba  cagione  di 
credere  8c  pure  uuole  dare  obfb'nato  inquelle 
o  farle  o  farle  fare  o  cofigliare  o  credere  cbe 
eno  lecite  e  peccato  mortale  X  Et  fono  come 
dice  fan(flo  t  Aguflmo  reliqute  de  pagani  8c 
pero  fi  puo  dire  effere  contro  al  primo  coma*ii 
dameto  della  legge  onde  e  comandato  dado 
rare  Sc  bonorare  uno  dio  uero  e  p  quede  obfee 
uatione  fi  bonora  el  demonio  o  altre  creature 
Ancora  fare  larcc  notoria  p  i  pararc  c  peccato 

The  Ripoli  Press.    Florence,  1477 
S.  Antoninus:  Confessionale  Volgare 

16-point 


THE  RIPOLI  PRESS 


In  the  year  1474  the  Order  of  St.  Dominic  determined  to 
establish  at  Florence  a  printing  house  in  the  monastery  of 
St.  Jacob  of  Ripoli.  Dominic  of  Pistoia,  a  priest  who  had 
acquired  some  knowledge  of  printing  by  residence  in  Rome, 
Venice  and  Milan,  was  made  its  general  manager.  He 
found  an  active  associate  in  Peter  of  Pisa,  and  immediately 
began  the  work  of  constructing  tools  and  utensils  for  this 
press.  In  1476  they  were  producing  in  a  petty  way  school- 
books  and  devotional  manuals  from  a  crudely  made  Gothic 
type  on  12 -point  body.^ 

The  Ripoli  Press  printed  a  few  large  books,  but  more 
were  of  small  size.  The  facsimile  on  the  facing  page  is  from 
St.  Anthony  on  Confession,  a  book  of  1477,  in  the  Italian 
language.  It  is  printed  on  a  leaf  51  x  8  inches,  on  paper 
uneven  in  color  but  thick,  strong,  and  well  sized.  The  type  is 
a  bold  Roman  on  16 -point  body,  but  the  book  shows  amateur 
and  inferior  workmanship  in  type,  composition,  presswork, 
and  binding.  It  has  signatures  but  no  catchwords,  and  is 
not  paged  with  Arabic  figures.  Accented  letters  and  con- 
tractions are  few.  This  book  was  made  to  the  order  of 
the  bookseller  Zenobi,  who  had  agreed  to  pay  for  one  hun- 
dred copies  no  livres,  he  furnishing  the  paper. 

'  To  please  book  buyers  who  did  not  like  and  one  of  Gothic  letter,  for  which  he  was 

this  style  of  letter  they  bought  matrices  paid  110  livres.    Another  goldsmith,  Banco, 

afterward  for  a  font  of  Roman  letter  from  made  for  the  Ripoli  Press  in  1481  one  hun- 

John  of  Mainz  for  ten  florins  of  gold.    In  a  dred  little  letters,  three  grand  letters,  orna- 

short  time  they  agreed  with  Bartolo,  a  book-  mented,  and  three  vignettes  on  copper,  for 

seller,  to  have  him  publish  their  books,  and  decoration  of  books.    Fossi,  an  Italian  bibli- 

he  also  aided  them  financially  in  founding  ograplier,  estimates  the  production  of  the 

the  new  corporation  of  the  Ripoli  Press.   In  Ripoli  Press  at  nearly  one  hundred  distinct 

1478  the  goldsmith  Benvenuto  (not  Cellini)  works.  After  1476  Proctor  credits  this  press 

engraved  for  them  two  new  faces  of  Roman  with  five  kinds  of  type  and  nineteen  books. 

127 


CALIGULA  BAZALERIO 


About  a  dozen  books  are  accredited  to  this  printer  at  Bologna 
between  1495  and  1 500.  The  facsimile  that  follows  is  a  page 
from  the  one  last  published,  the  Statuta  et  Decreta  Communis 
Genuae,  with  leaf  71  x  1 H  inches.  There  are  more  than  one 
hundred  and  twenty  of  these  leaves,  some  paged  with  Arabic 
figures  and  others  unpaged— apparently  a  collection  of  statutes 
made  at  different  dates.  The  type  is  a  compressed  and 
bold  Roman  letter  of  12i-point  body,  carefully  designed  and 
more  neatly  printed  than  was  then  customary  with  the  minor 
printers  of  the  time.  Hyphens,  accents,  abbreviations,  and 
diphthongs  are  used  in  a  logical  manner,  showing  a  desire 
to  make  composition  easily  readable.  The  text  closes  with 
an  engraved  device  containing  the  letters  K  L,  whose 
meaning  cannot  be  explained.  It  also  contains  the  written 
statement  that  the  book  was  made  for  Ant.  Maria  Vindomi- 
nus,  who  probably  was  its  publisher. 

Although  the  facsimile  fairly  shows  the  designing  of  the 
type  and  the  quality  of  the  type-founding,  it  may  be  mis- 
leading in  producing  an  impression  of  monastic  compactness 
in  the  composition  and  general  make-up  of  the  book.  Many 
pages  of  the  book  are  very  open.  The  running  title  is  well 
placed  at  the  head  of  the  page.  A  generous  amount  of  white 
space  is  used  for  the  separation  of  paragraphs  and  for  the 
subheadings.  In  many  features  it  conforms  to  modern 
methods  of  book-making,  with  obvious  intent  to  make  the 
subject-matter  more  accessible  and  readable.  This  book  is 
one  of  a  few  early  indications  that  some  printers  were  begin- 
ning to  perceive  the  need  of  reforms  in  composition. 

128 


Plate  35 


CDE  Potellate  &  bailia  Cofulu  rationis  in  ^(liSibiu  Uba^  centtf  \ 

ic  aliqua  atfta  &  fcriptur^  faAa  fuerint  coram  didtis  Condilibus  in  eorum 
fit  arbitno  compelter  partes  uel  aliquam  earum  ad  folucndura  pro  expenfis 
di(flamm  fcripturarum  uel  adtorum  illam  quantitatem  pecuniserquam  taxa*» 
ucrit{dum  tame  no  excedatur  didtus  numerus :  quse  pecunia  perueniat  ad  ma 
nus  5indicatorum:&:  de  ipa  fiat[ut  de  aliis  &  pecunia  fic  exadta  pro  fcripturis 
non  reftituatur  alicui  partium*     CQui  denarii  lex  dc  trcs  ut  fupra  foluen-' 
di  dcntur  per  Vtra$  partem  [Ita  q>  Vtra^  parrium  foluat  &  deponat  ftatim 
fadla  contraditione  findicatoribus  antedidlis  didtos  denariosJn  fine  autemq 
(tionis  reftitui  debeant  parti  uidtrici  illud  quod  idepofucrit  a  Sindicatoribus  i 
totfi  uelppte;  qua  obtinuerit  uel  uicerit  fecudu  q?  cognitu  fuerit  p  didtos^ 
fulcs.  Et  ii  effet  tutor  uel  Curator  Minorum  uel  boriorum  uel  hazreditatis 
uel  lirisfuel  alius  admiiiiftrator:qui  luraret  corpotaliter  fe  no  Iiaberefnec  poP 
fc  habere  dc  bonis  tutella:  Curae  uel  adminiftrationis  dldtam  pecuniam  dc.^ 
ponendlftunc  ille  talis  adminiftrator  non  tciieatur  foluere  didlam  oecunia5{ 
uel  aliquid  deponere[Sed  tamen  alius  litigans  cu  tali  tutore  uel  adminiftrato 
re  non  excufetur  a  depoiitione  prardidla*     CQui  litigans  cum  prardidlis 
fi  obtineat  in  caufa  non  relinquat  cius  dcpofitum  penes  findicatores  |  fi  no  i 
bonis  tutelle  Curse  uel  adminiftratiois  fint  bona  alicuius  gnis  ultra  illud  qd 
In  fententia  dedudtum  fucritfin  quibus  pofljtConfequi  Solutionem  de  didla 
pccuniajad  quam  confequendam  magiftratus  fauere  polTrnt  uti  &  coram  co 
fulibus{&  coram  quolibet  magiftratu[&  ad  id  magiftratus  fib!  pra:ftent  fauo 
rabilem  iuftitiam,     CSi  uero  didhis  ui<aor  ante  fententiam  petierit  talem 
fauorem  [  teneantur  didti  Confules  in  fententia  diffinitiua:quam  ferrent  tuto 
rem  Curatorem  uel  adminiftratorcm  in  quantitate  didti  depofiti  etiam  con-' 
demnarc*     dQ^od  fi  talis  tutor  uel  adminiftrator  inueniretur  habere  ud 
debere  habere  penes  fe  de  bonis  mobilibus  tutellae  Cura:  uel  adminiftratlO'' 
iiis[uel  Comifilfe  in  prccdidlis  dolum  uel  fraudem:de  Cuius  comiflioe  ftetur 
didto[&  declarationi  confulum  puniatur  de  fuo  piurio  in  tanta  quantitate  dc 
quanta  uidebitur  ipfis  confulibus  exigenda  dc  fadlo  per  eosffine  aliqua  con^* 
demnatione  ficnda.     Qusc  pecunia  colligenda  non  debeat  nec  poffit  cx" 
pendi  feu  conuerti  in  alios  ufus  uel  in  alia  Solutione  ^  prfcdidtis.f.in  Solutio 
nc  8c  fatiffadtione  $c  Sallariis  didlorum  Confulum  [&  cartulariis  didta:  curia: 
papiri  candelarum  pro  cxaminandls  proceflibus  &  fcribendi$:Et  fi  qui  fupcr 
crit  detur&  foluatur  MalTariis  giialibus  comunis  &  nomine  ComunisfEt  fi 
pecunia  didlorum  denariorum  fex  dc  trium  colligendorum  no  afcenderet  ad 
lummam  Sallariorum  iporum  confulum  deficiehtia  fui  Sallarii[Si  qua  fuerit 
liippleatur  eisfde  quacu^  alia  pecunia  comunis  Ianua::ad  quam  habendam 
&  redpiendam  &  fibi  foluendam  domlnus  gubnator  fic  Confilium  &  Mafia 
fii  Comunis  hmx  feuorem  debltum  prarftent  ilHs*     CI  Notarii  uero  ipo 
rum  Confulum  teneantur  dare  in  fctiptis  offido  Sindicatorum  nomina  &  p 
nomina  Htigantium  coram  confulibus  pr£edidtisf&  diem  f qua  lis  uel  qukefiio 
fuerit  incepta  fingulis  diebus  Sabbati  fingularu  hebdomadaru  illud  [  qd  pe^ 
tif  fub  poena  findicato^  arbitrio*     CQui  notarii  uel  fcriba:  no  obftatibus 
pdldtis  uel  I  fcriptis  qncu^  fuerint  rcqfiti  uel  aliquis  eo^tfut  debdic  cfi  diclis 
cofulibus  elTe  pmcs  ad  examinadfi  qftioes  fic  pccITus  p  eos  fcriptos[ecneanf 
&  debeat  interelle  ad  mandatu  ipo^  Cofulfi  firtnp  in  tocis  diebus  i  horis  p 

Caligula  Bazalerio.    Bologna,  1498 
Statuta  et  Decreta  Communis  Genuae 

12J-point 


Plate  36 


mot?  ad  alias  ptcs  corpis  itelh'gif  aia  q  e^ndpin vitc  in  corpe.  c 
Catabo.orc.  d  Et  pfalla.  niete:f m  pf.  Ixxxiii.  Cor  mcu  et 
caro  mea  exiiltauef  t  in  deu .  e  In  gfa  mca.  GKa  eR  dara  noti 
cia  cd  laiide.Dauid  adt  int!  alios  j)phas  habuitvalde  dara  noticia 

et  ^hetia  fuam  ^tulit  p 
modd  diuinc  laudis:vt 
dcm  fmt  i  ^ndpio  h'li' 
bri  difFufi9:^pt  qd^phe 
tia  fuarbnvocaf  hic  gfo 
f  Exurge  pfaltcnd  1  ci 
thara.qa  dd  pf.fuos  ca' 
tabat  voce  jpi^A-.i  muCv 
CIS  iftrumeti  g  Exur' 
ga  diluculo.Illa  ei  hora 
noies  deuoti  furgdt  ad 
laude  dei.'vn  t  ageli  6d 
laudates  dnr  aftra  ma' 
tutina :  lob .  xxxvhi.  Cn 
me  laiidaret  aftra  ma ' 
tutia  1  mbilaret  oes  fi" 
ludci.Et  ge.xxxii.agc' 
lus  dni  luctas  cd  lacob 
dixit  ci:Dimitteme:  ia 
ei  afcedit  aurora.qH.d. 
ia  eft  i)ora  laudadi  dcd 
n  luctadidfic  dcj  fuit  ibi 
dc.  h  Cofitcbortibi 
pfcfTionelaudis.  i  tn 
ppKs  ic.  jpiiidit  ei  i  fpn 
qj  pH  fui  forct  i  fufis  gc 
ncratoib^decatadi.'ficvi 
dem^iplctd  i  eccfa .  k  Q.uia  mag.  e  ff  ce.  mi. tua.  q>  ei  aligb^agel* 
6  celo  cadctib^alii  fmanetes  fuef  tpfi'rmati.'^cefTit  ex  mia  dci.  1 
Etvf(^  ad  nu. vi.tua.i.  vitas  iuftitie  tue  p  qua  ageli  fupbietes  cod' 
dert  i  K  aere  caliginofovbi  gnanf  nubesr^pt!  qd  dicrif  aeree  ptates 
m  Exaltarc  tc.p  celd  t  iri  itelligif  ois  creafa  qua  cxcellctia  dci 
excedit  i  ifinitd.  n  Vt  libercf . Hic  idpitvP  i  hc.^  i  tra. bie. vbi 
dd  f  ddit  rdej  fue  cxftatois  q  e  fibtuto  f  gni  iti^ti  meli?  qua  ex^mit 
^mo  p  modd  petitionis  a  deo  dices,  n  Vt  liberenf  ic.  x  expo 
naf  ifta  Ifa  vfj  ad  fine  pf.ficut  fupra  cxpofita  eft  pf.lix. 

G.iii 


cor  mcu:  dtabo^cfpfalla  in^glia 
mea.Exurge^pfalteriu  et  cithara; 
cxurga'diluculo.  C6fitebor''tibi  i* 
ppfis  dm:  et  pfalla  tibi  i  natoib?. 
Qjiia^magna  e  ff  celos  mia  tua; 
ct'vfq?  ad  nubes  Veritas  tua.Exal 
tare^Tf  celos  de'et  ff  ocm  t!ra  gla 
tua ;  vt"libcrcf  dilecti  tui.Saluum 
fee  dexfo  tua  :"ct  exaudi  me:  Jde' 
locut'  e  i  fco  fuo.ExuItabo  et  6i- 
uidi  ficbima:etpuallc  tabernaclb 
ru  dimetiar^Me?  e  galaad&me' 
eft  manaflfes:  et  tpliai  fufceptio 
capitis  mei.Iuda  rex  me?:  moab 
lebes  fpei  mee.  In  idumea  cxten 
da  calciamentu  meu:  mihi  alieni 
gene  amici  fci  fut.  Quis  deducet 
me  in  citatemunita:  qs  deducet 
mevfcp  i  idumeai^None  tu  de?  q 
fpulifti  nos:et  n  exibis  de'  i  virtu 


Ulric  Gering.   Paris,  1483 
Postils  of  Nicolas  de  Lyra  on  the  Psalter 

14-point  and  12-point 


TYPES  OF  FRANCE 


ULRIC  GERING 

Small  types  as  signs  have  always  been  needed  to  serve  for 
the  marks  of  reference  to  guide  the  eye  of  the  reader  from 
a  word  in  the  text  to  its  explanation  in  the  side-note.  These 
reference  marks  or  letters,  now  known  to  printers  as  supe- 
riors, appear  in  the  text  of  the  accompanying  facsimile  of 
the  edition  of  the  Postils  made  by  TJlric  Gering  of  Paris, 
but  they  do  not  appear  in  the  notes.  The  types  of  the  text 
are  on  14-point  body ;  the  notes  are  on  12 -point  body.  In 
the  side-notes  of  small  type  a  large  space  was  left  by  the 
compositor  for  a  mark  of  reference,  which  it  was  intended 
should  be  filled  in  with  pen  by  the  buyer  of  the  book,  who 
was  expected  to  make  a  red-ink  ring  or  other  visible  mark 
in  the  right  place  before  the  note.  In  this  edition  of  the 
Postils  the  design,  proportion,  and  fitting  up  of  matrices  to 
the  molds  have  not  been  quite  so  adroitly  done  as  in  some 
books  of  Italian  printers  of  that  period,  but  the  general 
effect  is  pleasing. 

Manuscript  books  of  the  fifteenth  century  showed  graces 
of  penmanship  in  finials  and  flourishes  that  were  impossible 
of  reproduction  in  type,  and  the  early  printers  wisely  declined 
to  imitate  them  or  even  to  make  varied  forms  of  the  same 
letter.  They  appreciated  their  beauty  but  shunned  their 
additional  expense,  for  each  new  character  compelled  the 
making  of  a  new  punch  and  matrix,  and  each  new  character 
was  a  hindrance  to  the  type- caster  and  the  compositor.  It 

131 


Influence  of  copperplate  on  type-founding 

was  then  wisely  decided  that  two  or  more  forms  of  the  same 
letter  would  not  be  of  service  to  the  reader,  and  that  an  in- 
flexible uniformity  in  the  appearance  of  the  same  letter  was 
of  more  importance  than  an  exhibit  of  the  graceful  fancies  of 
the  penman  or  designer.  Utility  more  than  artistic  caprice 
was  the  object  sought.  The  letters  long  f  and  final  s  were 
exceptions  to  duplication.  Type-founders  rightfully  thought 
it  enough  to  cut  punches  for  the  abbreviations  of  syllables 
then  made  by  recognized  copyists.  Even  the  diphthongs 
86  and  Oi  were  represented  occasionally  by  the  addition  of  a 
stroke  over  the  e. 

In  discarding  the  finical  graces  of  penmanship,  Sweinheim, 
Numeister,  and  the  Speyer  brothers  may  have  gone  too  far 
toward  sturdy  simplicity.  They  intended  to  make  a  print 
plainer  and  bolder  than  manuscript,  in  the  belief  that  bold- 
ness would  be  more  acceptable  to  the  reader.  They  studi- 
ously avoided  hair-lines  and  other  features  of  indistinctness, 
but  their  letters,  easily  discerned,  were  needlessly  bold  and 
rough.  Sturdy  types  always  had  the  merit  of  legibility ;  yet 
they  were  disliked  by  collectors  of  taste  for  lack  of  neatness. 

Typography  had  met  already  a  formidable  competitor  in 
the  new  art  of  copperplate  printing,  which  was  then  produc- 
ing pictures  and  decorations  in  a  style  unattainable  fi-om 
types.  It  was  soon  found,  however,  that  copperplate  was 
the  slower  and  more  expensive  process,  and  that  it  could  be 
most  wisely  applied  to  the  reproduction  of  maps  and  pictures. 
Yet  there  were  readers  who  did  see  that  it  was  possible  to 
print  more  neatly  from  cleaner  types  —  to  transfer  to  paper 
lines  free  in  movement  and  as  sharp  and  delicate  as  those 
made  by  an  expert  penman.  Contrasted  with  prints  then 
made  by  some  engravers  on  copper,  the  engraving  of  Jenson, 
Ratdolt,  and  Renner  seemed  relatively  coarse. 

132 


Beginning  of  the  feminine  style  of  typography 

Remier's  Quadragesimale  letter  is  an  attempt  to  imitate  in 
type  tiie  fine  lines  of  a  penman.  In  other  books  by  Renner 
we  find  initial  letters  designed  and  carefully  engraved  on 
wood,  and  even  attempts  at  pictures,  as  in  his  representa- 
tion of  the  Doge's  palace  at  Venice,  but  they  were  inferior 
to  many  copperplate  prints  of  that  period. 

The  German  style  of  engraving  on  wood  did  not  prove 
attractive  to  Italian  readers :  figures  and  draperies  were  stiff" 
and  angular;  few  attempts  were  made  to  show  roundness 
of  form  by  conventional  shading.  A  new  style  of  engrav- 
ing on  wood  was  introduced  at  Florence  in  1490.  It  had 
thin  outlines  and  great  openness  and  showed  many  refine- 
ments of  delicacy,  much  to  the  improvement  of  all  pictorial 
subjects.  Designers  of  type  were  made  to  see  from  the  new 
style  that  type  was  not  made  more  intelligible  by  thick  lines, 
and  that  white  space  for  relief  was  really  needed  in  types. 

Copperplate  could  not  and  did  not  supplant  typography, 
but  it  did  exert  at  the  outset  a  wholesome  influence  on  its 
improvement.  It  showed  that  characters  to  be  legible  need 
not  be  coarse,  and  it  did  stimulate  designers  of  types  to 
be  more  careful  in  drawing  and  proportioning  letters. 

Copperplate  was  long  regarded  as  an  indispensable  adjunct 
to  the  best  typography.  Architectural  title-pages,  initials, 
and  head-bands  were  made  by  this  process  to  the  neglect  of 
engraving  on  wood.  Writers  on  typography  like  Moxon  in 
1683,  and  Fournier  in  1766,  preferred  copperplate  to  wood 
for  illustrations  of  their  tools.  For  many  years  engraving 
on  wood  was  regarded  as  an  inferior  art,  and  artistic  merit 
was  conceded  almost  exclusively  to  engravers  on  copper. 
Type-founders  were  induced  to  make  types  needlessly  light, 
delicate,  and  faint  almost  to  indistinctness. 

133 


CLAUDE  GARAMOND 


The  rapidly  increasing  popularity  of  Italic  suggested  to  a 
few  type-founders  that  the  lightness  and  openness  produced 
by  its  thin  lines  might  be  wisely  repeated  in  a  reconstruction 
of  upright  Roman  letter.  Experience  had  proved  that  thick- 
stemmed  and  black-faced  types,  whether  of  Gothic  or  Roman 
forms,  did  not  favor  easy  reading  or  produce  pleasing  print. 
They  grew  tiresome.  Ratdolt  and  Renner  had  shown  that 
it  was  possible  to  cast  and  print  types  that  contained  some 
thin  hair-lines  and  that  a  more  cunning  union  of  the  thick 
and  thin  lines  of  each  letter  would  be  helpful  in  producing 
a  type  that  would  show  some  of  the  delicacy  of  fine  penman- 
ship even  if  it  did  not  exhibit  its  full  freedom.  The  unusual 
sharpness  of  printed  line  so  easily  produced  by  the  new  art 
of  copperplate  engraving  had  also  increased  a  growing  dis- 
satisfaction with  the  coarser  lines  of  typography.  There 
were  some  readers  who  thought  that  touches  of  grace  could 
be  safely  added  to  needlessly  rough  types.  Why  must  they 
be  so  offensively  sturdy  ?  Why  should  curves  be  stiff,  lines 
uneven  in  thickness,  and  letters  out  of  true  proportion  with 
one  another? 

It  was  not  in  Venice  or  Rome  but  in  Paris  that  the 
more  graceful  Roman  types  desired  by  the  critical  reader 
first  appeared.  Improvements  in  Italian  printing  and  book- 
making  arts  had  culminated  with  Aldus.  Dm-ing  the 
first  quarter  of  the  sixteenth  century  Italian  typography 
declined  from  good  to  bad,  from  bad  to  worse.  France 
became  the  leader  in  all  the  departments  of  printing,  and 

134 


Plate  37 

La  decouverte  de 
1  imprimerie  separe 
le  monde  ancien  du 
monde  moderne. 

FiRMIN  DiDOT. 

Roman  type  of  Claude  Garamond,  Paris 

About  42-polnt 

Exact  date  for  the  cutting  of  these  types  cannot  be  given. 
It  was  probably  about  1520 

L,a  decouverte  de 
I  imprimerie  separe.  le 
monde  ancien  du  monde 
moderne. 

FiRMIN  DiDOT. 

Italic  type  of  Claude  Garamond,  Paris 


Styles  of  Garamond  and  Granjon 


Claude  Garamond  was  everywhere  conceded  as  the  true 
master  in  type-founding/ 

These  facsimiles  of  Garamond's  type  have  been  copied 
from  the  Histoire  Economique  de  I'lmprimerie  of  Paul  Mel- 
lottee,  who  certifies  them  as  impressions  fi*om  types  cast  in 
the  original  matrices  swaged  by  Garamond  and  now  pre- 
served in  the  National  Printing  House  at  Paris.  The  letters, 
too  few  fairly  to  present  the  full  merit  of  his  alphabet,  are 
enough  to  indicate  his  skill  and  good  taste.  Adherence  to 
established  usage  is  noted  in  the  ci'amped  s  and  a.  The 
thick- stemmed  large  capitals  and  the  dwarfed  small  capitals 
may  be  even  now  offenses  to  typographical  critics,  but  the 
general  effect  of  the  Eoman  and  Italic  is  that  of  lightness 
and  clearness,  with  a  symmetry  attained  by  no  previous 
designer.  Each  series  shows  the  sharp  hair-line  and  serif 
admired  by  lovers  of  copperplate  prints.  The  Roman  is 
large,  round,  and  easy  to  read;  the  Italic  has  pen-like 
graces;  they  are  worthy  rivals  of  the  best  work  of  Jenson 
or  Van  Dijck,  Caslon  or  Bodoni.- 

1  Garamond,  an  enthusiast  about  types,  trious  men,  and  has  been  recompensed  with 

still  affectionately  known  in  France  as  the  many  beautiful  eulogies  after  his  death." 

"father  of  type-founders,"  was  the  first  to  ^  ^^nother  French  improver  of  Koman  type 

make  type-founding  a  separate  department  was  Robert  Granjon,  attached  to  the  Laco- 

of  typography,  and  he  gave  it  his  exclusive  longe  type-foundry  of  Lyons,  who  designed 

attention.    He  had  been  taught  the  scientific  a  new  style  of  Roman  type  about  the  middle 

construction  and  combination  of  letters  by  of  the  sixteenth  century.    It  was  of  lighter 

Geofroy  Tory,  a  French  artist  of  Italian  edu-  face,  even  more  open  and  graceful  than  the 

cation  and  the  author  of  Champfleurj',  a  book  style  of  Garamond.    Granjon  made  designs 

written  to  give  exact  rules  for  their  correct  for  or  furnished  types  to  Christopher  Plantin 

form.      Garamond  was  commissioned   by  of  Antwerp  and  the  printing-house  of  the 

Francis  i  in  1515  to  make  the  caracteres  Vatican,  but  they  proved  of  frail  form  and 

regii  for  the  Imprimerie  Royale  (still  surviv-  soon  went  out  of  service.    Tastes  change 

ing  as  the  Imprimerie  Rationale)  and  did  capriciously.    After  two  centuries  of  neglect 

make  many  sizes  and  faces  of  Roman,  Italic,  the  Granjon  face  was  revived  for  a  short 

Greek,  Hebrew,  etc.  Bernard,  in  his  Histoire  time  during  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth 

de  I'lmprimerie  Royale,  pp.  11,  12,  ironically  century  by  Louis  Perrin  of  Lyons,  a  printer 

quotes  the  following  extract  from  the  writ-  of  marked  ability  now  almost  forgotten,  who 

ings  of  Antoine  Vitre  of  1655:  "  Garamond  printed  a  few  books  and  pamphlets  of  merit, 

ended  his  life  [1561]  in  extreme  misery,  but  but  his  types  have  since  been  put  asitle  for 

he  has  been  put  on  the  honor  roll  of  illus-  modern  types  of  inferiority. 

136 


LARGE  AND  SMALL  TYPES 


Engraved  initial  letters,  some  of  admirable  design,  are  to 
be  found  in  a  few  books  printed  dm-ing  the  last  quarter  of 
the  fifteenth  century;  but  the  type-founded  Roman  capital 
letters  of  plain  form  and  of  a  larger  size  than  the  types  of 
the  text  are  not  common.  They  were  not  needed,  for  it 
was  not  then  customary  to  print  the  title  of  the  book  on 
a  separate  leaf  preceding  its  text.  When  this  practice  of 
giving  a  separate  leaf  for  the  title-page  did  begin,  the  capitals 
of  the  text  were  set  up  in  the  middle  of  the  first  blank 


ORTHOGRAPHIA  ET  FLEXVJOIs 

CTIOMVM  GR  AECARVM  0=  V  E  N  E  T  1 1  J  I  N  A  E  D  I  B  V  5 


MM[VM  APVO  STArrVM 
CVM  ACCENTIB.ET  GE 
NERIB  EX  V  ARII$ 


ALDI.  MENJE  AV 
G  VfTO-M-DII- 


^  C^v Ve^av-^ ^ dutumeftctin hocutPncaierk- 
TORIB. 

title  in  Statius  of  1502  Imprint  at  end  of  Statins  of  1502 


page,  but  rarely  at  its  top  or  head,  and  this  treatment  made 
what  printers  now  call  a  bastard  title.  The  small  capital 
letters  so  used  for  the  bastard  title  now  seem  insufficient  as 
to  prominence,  and  but  paltry  ushers  to  a  book  of  value. 

The  title-page  that  gives  in  large  type  and  on  a  separate 
leaf  in  the  front  of  the  book  its  name  in  full,  with  that  of 
author,  editor,  illustrator,  and  the  place  and  date  of  printing, 
is  now  an  indispensable  part  of  every  book,  but  the  earlier 
printers  did  not  foresee  the  importance  of  this  information. 
Following  the  usages  of  the  copyists  of  the  time,  whose 

137 


Full  titles  and  bastard  titles 

names  usually  were  of  small  value  to  the  buyer  of  the  book, 
the  printers  put  their  own  names,  with  place  and  date,  in  a 
little  paragraph  of  small  type  at  the  end  of  the  text,  where 
it  was  often  obscured  by  index  matter  that  followed  too 
closely.  Some  printers  added  their  device  or  trade-mark; 
others  omitted  all  information.  It  often  happened  that  the 
buyer  of  the  old  book  searched  through  many  leaves  near 
its  end  before  he  could  be  sure  of  its  proper  title  and  of  the 
names  of  the  author  and  printer. 

The  new  craft  of  printing  compelled  many  changes  in 
fashions  of  book-making.  Book  buyers  wanted  the  name 
of  the  book,  as  well  as  that  of  the  printer  and  publisher, 
exposed  in  large  type  on  the  first  leaf  of  the  book,  so  that 
all  could  be  seen  at  first  glance.  By  general  consent  the 
name  of  the  book  always  had  the  most  conspicuous  type, 
but  the  name  of  the  printer  was  not  always  prominent.  In 
some  books  this  name  was  suppressed.  To  secure  the  needed 
buyers  a  publisher  of  resources  was  needed. 

Bastard  titles  in  Black-letter,  sometimes  beginning  with 
a  huge  intricate  initial,  had  been  made  at  early  dates  in 
Germany,  France,  and  Holland;  but  the  full  title-page  upon 
a  separate  leaf,  that  also  specified  the  name  of  the  book,  its 
author  and  publisher,  place  and  date,  sometimes  with  a 
punning  or  inappropriate  device,  was  not  in  common  use 
before  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century.  The  Froschover 
facsimile^  of  1543  on  the  following  page  is  of  a  form  then 
approved;  but  its  large  Roman  types  were  modeled  more 
after  the  style  of  Garamond  than  of  Jenson.  In  these  letters 
note  the  longer  protraction  of  the  thick  strokes  before  they 
change  to  a  thinner  line,  the  sparsity  of  true  thin  strokes  or 

'  The  device  of  the  frog  in  tlie  title  is  a  in  identifying  an  edition  of  the  book  with  the 
pun  on  tlie  name  of  Froschover  (in  German,  name  of  its  printer.  Punning  devices  were 
croaker  or  frog),  intended  to  assist  the  buyer    frequently  used  by  early  English  printers. 

138 


Plate  38 


BIBLIA 


SACROSANCTA  TESTA 

metiVeteris  &:Noui,c  facraHebraeo 
rum  lingua  Gr2Ecorumquc  fontibus. 
confulcis  fimul  orchodoxis  inter 
precib.rcligiofiffime  translaca 
in  fermoncm  Lacinum. 

Auchores  omnem^  tonus  open's  rationem  exfubk^a 
intelliges  Pr3cfadonc* 


PAVLVSROM.  XV. 
Quacunc^  fcri'pta  funt,  ad  noftram  doArinam  fcrfpta  funtjUtptr  pd 
tiendam  dC  confolattonem  fcripturarum  fpem  habeaniu$< 

TIGVRI  EXCVDEBAT.  C.  FROSCHOVBRV* 
ANNO   M»  D.  XlillU 

C.  Froscliover.   Zuricli,  1543 


Why  large  types  are  rare  as  book  texts 

hair-lines,  and  the  stubbiness  of  the  serifs.  The  types  had 
been  designed  for  wear  as  well  as  to  be  easily  read  and  not 
at  all  to  show  the  fancies  of  the  designer.  For  more  than 
two  centuries  the  full  title-page  then  coming  in  vogue  showed 
large  and  light-faced  types  in  all  lines  intended  for  promi- 
nence. Types  with  thicker  strokes  and  bolder  face  were 
occasionally  made,  but  they  did  not  meet  with  equal  favor; 
they  were  disliked  by  the  critical  as  too  suggestive  of  the 
gloomy  Black-letter  or  Gothic,  which  was  gradually  passing 
out  of  use  in  southern  Europe  and  Great  Britain. 

Large  types  of  capitals  with  lower-case  on  bodies  of  about 
the  sizes  of  24-  28-  or  32-point  had  admirers  in  the  six- 
teenth centmy,  but  they  could  be  used  only  for  the  texts  of 
the  very  large  books  then  produced  to  please  readers  who 
valued  them  for  show  more  than  service.  The  small  book 
that  could  readily  be  held  in  one  hand,  preferred  by  readers, 
was  then  amply  provided  by  printers.  Large  text-types 
are  rarely  selected  now,  for  they  make  books  expensive  and 
unhandy.^ 

Another  hindrance  to  the  selection  of  large  types  for  small 
pages  was  caused  by  the  increasing  width  of  the  new  styles 
of  type  then  in  favor.    The  types  of  Caslon  that  had  been 


'The  present  neglect  of  the  16-point  body  it  made  the  even  spacing  of  lines  more  diffi- 

for  text-type  by  American  and  English  type-  cult  and  largely  diminished  their  earnings, 

founders  and  printers  may  need  explanation.  It  was  decided  by  compositors  in  America  and 

Thissize  and  the  larger  size  of  18-pointcan  be  Great  Britain  that  all  types  larger  than  pica 

seen  in  many  small  octavos  and  duodecimos  should  be  measured  and  paid  for  as  if  set  in 

of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries,  pica,  the  name  then  given  to  the  12-poiut 

If  adjudged  too  large  for  the  text  itself,  it  body.    By  this  rule  the  composition  of  rela- 

was  selected  for  the  preface  and  introduction,  tively  few  words  in  18-point  would  cost 

Every  author  and  publisher  appreciated  the  more  than  the  composition  of  many  more  ' 

attractiveness  of  large  letter  and  made  use  Avords  in  12-point.     When   authors  and 

of  it  when  it  was  practicable;  but  in  the  publishers  found  that  large  type  largely 

nineteenth  century  type  on  18-point  body  increased  expense  of  composition  as  well  as 

rarely  appeared  upon  a  small  leaf.    Type-  that  of  paper,  presswork,  and  binding,  large 

setters  disliked  it  and  properly  asked  an  types  went  out  of  fashion  for  the  ordinary 

increased  price  for  its  slower  con)position ;  book. 

140 


Large  text-types  make  books  large  and  unhandy 

approved  for  many  years  were  thin  and  closely  fitted  to  one 
another,  permitting  many  letters  to  be  put  in  one  line;  but 
the  newer  styles  of  Bodoni  and  Didot,  as  modified  by  English 
founders,  that  followed  the  Oaslon  fashion,  were  rounder 
and  wider,  and  they  permitted  fewer  letters  to  the  line.  This 
increased  width  often  compelled  wider  and  uneven  spacing 
between  words,  with  the  frequent  occurrence  of  the  "hound's 
teeth,"  or  irregular  gaps  of  white  space  between  words  in 
proximate  lines,  that  were  an  offense  to  critical  readers.  A 
type  of  smaller  body  seemed  the  readiest  way  to  avoid  this 
blemish.  Authors  and  publishers  who  desired  an  open  and 
readable  page  for  a  small  leaf  had  to  be  content  with  12-  or 
14-point,  leaded  or  double  leaded.  In  their  grading  of  book 
sizes  type-founders  skipped  from  14-point  to  18 -point.  The 
intermediate  body  of  16-point,  often  used  now  by  Continental 
printers,  has  been  neglected  for  many  years  in  America  and 
England  as  a  text-type  for  books. 

Large  types  for  texts  are  now  in  slight  request :  the  body 
of  18-point  is  reserved  for  occasional  quartos  and  folios;  16- 
point  is  a  size  unknown  in  many  large  book  printing  houses ; 
14-point  and  12-point  are  approved  for  sumptuous  books  in 
quarto  and  large  octavo;  but  10-point  and  11 -point  are 
oftener  selected  for  the  ordinary  book.  Although  small 
types  are  common,  largeness  of  type  is  still  considered  a  fea- 
ture of  merit  in  a  comparison  of  old  with  new  books.  Even 
when  admirably  planned  and  printed  the  duodecimo  of  10- 
point  type  is  rated  by  many  critics  as  but  a  petty  produc- 
tion; it  is  the  portly  folio  in  great  type  that  is  the  grand 
book.  The  old  masterpieces,  so-called,  in  large  type,  over- 
shadow smaller  books,  as  may  be  more  clearly  understood 
after  a  comparison  of  two  editions  of  Livy — one  of  the  fifteenth 
and  the  other  of  the  seventeenth  century,  of  which  facsimiles 

141 


Plate  a9 


Item  Jurficum.  prx  auorum  Jupcr- 
bin  arque  oplhns  nec  leges  qulcquan: 
cffent,  nec  inscillrarus.  acciiravit.  3c 
iir  fccundlsaurlbus  Jcclpl  oracionem 
animad-ertir ,  6c  infimorum  quoque 
llbertaci  yravem  elTe  fuperblam  co- 
lum  ;  lecem  exrempln  promulgavir ; 
perruUrque,  Ut  in  (ingulos  annos 
Ju.licei  leeerenrur .  ne  quLs  bit.-.- 
nlum  continuum  juicxeflcr.  Caere, 
rum,  quanram  eo  f^i^o  ad  plebem 


proprias  (imultates  Irriwvir.  Vef»l- 
lialiA  pabllc.i  parrim  neeligentU  diU- 
bebanrur;  parrl.n  prxdx  ac  dlvlful 
primljum  quibiiCrtam  ScmagiftrarU 
bui  erant ;  quln  8c  pecunia  .  qui  la 
ftlpendlum  Romanis fiw quoque an- 
r .  rrlburumque 


cpriv 


l^poftquatr 


fumereni ,  quantum  peaiJatus  aver- 
reret;  omnibus  refiduls  pccumls  exj- 
ftis  n  .bufo  prlvatis  remlOb  .  ftrls  lo- 
cuplerim  rempub.    fore  ad  ve<tlga| 


ribus  extorto  ,  Infenfi  8c  Irarl ,  Ro- 
manosin  Annlbalera,  Sc  ipfosuuf- 
fam  odliquiBrcnres,  Inftlgabanr.  Ira- 


dignirare  elte  ducebat  »  fublcriben 
ndiis  accufaflonlbufque  Annlbalis. 
8c  firtionibus  Carrhaglnlenfium  In- 


tandem  pervlcerunr,  ut  legsfi  Car 
thaglnem  mlrtercnrur,  qulapudfe- 
natum  eorum  arRuerenr ,  Annibalem 
cum  Antiocho  reee  confilla  belli  fa- 
ciendi  Inlre.  Leearl  fresmifli,  C.  Ser- 
TlUus,  M.  Claudius  Marcellus,(l  Te- 


Anmbalis  i 


miinim  Mafanifla rece Numldarum 
Carthaginienfibiis  eflenc ,  dtrlmen- 
dis.  id  crcdlriim  vuJfiO.  Annibalem 
iinum  fe  perl  ab  Romanis  non  fjlle- 
bat  ;  Scirapacem  Cart*^ 


xxxni. 

ncbrls  *etlitu  forenfi  .id  porram  cum 
diiolxis  comlribus  l^naiU  coniilU  cQ 


Thaplum  ~.d 


bal  evceflir 
1  C'crclnam 


Invcnl^er  ,  8c  ;id  c^i  ciTun  cum  t 
veconrurlus^ralurnnriiimen;etf,.(t 


lenHi  ecs,  qui  In  porni  ei 
babulc .  navem  Iblvlr. 
quum  poftero  die  rand- 
pleni  crapulx  fun 


i^foplti 
Id  qurd 


balls  frequenrare,  concurfus  ad  pc- 
Hibulum  idlum  eft  fathis  ;  Sc  ut  non 
comparere  eura  vulgarura  eft ,  In  fo- 
rum rurba  convenlt ,  principtm  cl- 
vltatls  quircnrlum  ,  8c  alii  fucam 


[  id  quod  e 


dcre  rempori  Sc 
pr;eparatis  Jam  < 

earn,  obverfarus  eo  nic  in  roro  >  aver- 
CCQdc  fufpicionis  caufla,  prtmlstC' 


ad  fu- 


rej  fcvcnrium  fjiHonibus.  Vi/um 
dcinde  Cercin.^  cum ,  randcm  alla- 

Cap.  X  L I X.  Romanl  le«ati  quuin 
In  fenaru  expofulffenr .  Camptrtrtra 
Tatribiis  Romanir  efTe ,  cf  'Philip* 
piim  re^cm  ante  j^nnitale  m^xi- 
me  aecenjtfm,  beUum  poptilo  Romano 
feciffie,  c-"  """^^  literal  nuncio^ue 
ab  eo  ad  yl?jriochiim  re^^ent  profeaosi 
hand  qitietitru"7  ante  ,  cju.:m  belitrm 
toio  orbe  terraruni  confciffet.  Ne  his 
debere  impunc  effc  ,fi  fjtisfacere  Car^ 
th/fcinlenfes  pnpulo  Ro^nano  ^veUevtt 
Mihi't  eorum  fua-rolnrrta;e  ,  mcpM* 
blico  eoTi/illo  faCJii/iJ  effe  Carthagl- 
nlenfes  refponderunr ,  quicquM  Xf 
ccnfulfTent  Romanl f^uroa 

?nif :  excepnilque  ^  condi7or!l 
patrU,  vir 
pcnerc  I 


pervenif :  excepnu*^ 
bus  Carrhaglnis ,  i 


paucos  moraius  dies  i  Antloctd 


navi- 


Diiniel  Elzevir.  Amsterdam, 
Livy 

4i-point 


1678 


Crudity  of  many  early  types 

here  appear  in  plates  14  and  39.  The  Livy^  neatly  printed 
by  Daniel  Elzevir  of  Amsterdam,  in  1678,  on  a  leaf  3ix  5i 
inches,  seems  of  small  merit  to  the  collector  when  compared 
with  the  grand  Livy  of  John  of  Speyer,  in  two  volumes  folio. 
In  neat  mechanical  workmanship  and  accuracy  of  text  the 
Elzevir  Livy  is  much  the  better  book,  even  if  it  is  in  petty 
type  and  on  thin  paper;  it  contains  more  matter,  and  has 
been  more  carefully  planned  and  made. 

Early  types  may  be  justly  admired  as  the  praiseworthy 
work  of  inexperts  under  peculiar  difficulties;  but  no  lover 
of  exact  handicraft  can  commend  them  as  faultless,  or  even 
as  close  approximations  toward  ideal  perfection.  The  types 
made  by  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz  of  Rome  and  by  John  and 
Wendelin  of  Speyer  at  Venice  suffer  in  comparison  with  those 
made  soon  afterward  by  Jenson  and  Ratdolt,  de  Zanis  and 
de  Tortis.  A  gradual  improvement  in  every  department  of 
typography  is  noticeable  in  the  facsimiles.  Types  of  1485 
are,  as  a  rule,  more  carefully  designed  and  founded  than 
those  of  1470,  even  when  they  appear  in  books  that  have 
been  damaged  by  too  careless  composition  and  press  work. 
Brown  says  that,  after  1480,  the  presswork,  paper,  and 
binding  of  Italian  printers  were  often  inferior.  This  is  true ; 
but  the  types  of  more  expert  printers  of  the  next  genera- 
tion in  France  and  Holland  show  steady  improvement  in 
design,  engraving,  and  casting. 

^  The  Elzevir  Livy  is  in  two  columns,  and  This  edition  of  Livy,  made  to  be  sold  at  low 
the  closely  following  chapters  are  graced  with  price  to  poor  buyers,  was  then  held  in  light 
engraved  initial  letters.  Its  type,  on  a  body  esteem  and  somewhat  contemned.  Its  editor, 
then  rated  as  diamond  (about  4^-point),  is  of  Gronovius,  thus  wrote  to  Heinsius:  "I  do 
light  face  and  good  design,  equally  meritori-  wish  that  my  Livy  had  been  published  in  an- 
ous  and  harmonious  in  its  capitals  and  Italic,  other  form."  Heinsius  replies  that  the  "petty 
Presswork  is  even  in  color  and  impression  types  of  this  book  give  great  displeasure  to 
throughout  its  seven  hundred  and  eighty-  the  scholars  of  your  city."  Another  critic, 
eight  pages ;  paper  is  hard,  thin,  snappy,  tough,  Le  Febvre,  adds  this :  "I  care  nothing  for  the 
and  opaque ;  it  is  carefully  sewed,  sections  white  Elzevir  paper,  or  for  the  beautiful  print- 
are  flexible,  and  all  leaves  open  easily.  ing;  I  see  only  petty  type  on  a  niggardly  leaf." 

143 


NOTES  AND  COMMENTS 


TYPE -FOUNDING 


Few  early  printers  received  thorough  training.  Proficient 
as  some  were  in  the  practice  of  one  or  two  departments  of 
printing,  more  had  hut  slender  knowledge  of  the  details  of 
the  diverse  crafts  required  for  the  making  of  hooks.  Many 
of  the  German  printers  were  type-setters  or  type-casters  only. 
They  hegan  their  purposed  practice  of  printing  in  Italy  by 
seeking  the  aid  of  wealthy  men  who  would  he  helpful  as 
partners  or  money-lenders,  and  provide  for  the  payment  of 
skilled  mechanics  in  other  useful  crafts. 

Implements  needed  for  the  full  development  of  the  art 
were  necessary,  hut  could  not  be  bought  in  stores  of  mer- 
chandise. Types  modeled  after  letters  of  manuscript  selected 
for  their  adaptability  to  type  printing  must  be  made  to  order 
and  symmetrically  engraved  on  hard  metal  punches.  Their 
reversed  duplicates  in  the  form  of  matrices  must  be  swaged 
in  copper,  and  all  matrices  accurately  fitted  to  one  another 
and  to  one  general  mold  of  hard  metal,  which  was  quite  diffi- 
cult of  construction.  These  manipulations  compelled  the 
printer  who  knew  only  how  to  set  and  print  the  types  that 
had  been  made  for  him  to  seek  the  services  of  a  goldsmith 
or  worker  in  fine  metals.  The  casting  of  types  from  the 
mold  and  their  composition  in  lines  and  pages  were  subse- 
quently done  in  the  improvised  printing  house,  and  usually 
by  inexperts  who  began  their  work  with  small  knowledge  of 
the  theory  or  practice  of  printing.  The  compositors  must 
have  had  some  knowledge  of  Latin  to  enable  them  to  read 
Latin  texts.  Considering  that  the  work  was  new,  it  is  a 
wonder  that  the  novices  did  so  well. 

147 


Simplidty  favored  hy  designers  of  type 

As  he  had  to  create  the  types  he  needed,  the  first  step  of 
the  master  printer  toward  book -making  was  the  selection 
of  a  model  style  of  lettering  for  the  book  to  be  made.  He 
might  find  a  model  in  any  reputable  library.  Italian  copy- 
ists had  an  enviable  reputation  for  neat  penmanship,  but  the 
intending  type-maker  soon  discovered  that  the  pretty  letter- 
ing of  an  admired  book  could  not  be  correctly  repeated  in 
squared  type.  He  must  compare  the  letters  of  many  books 
before  he  could  select  one  for  its  adaptability  to  the  squared 
shape.  Simplifications  had  to  be  made;  the  curvetings  of 
the  penman  were  curbed  to  keep  flowing  strokes  on  the 
squared  bodies  demanded  for  movable  types;  the  letter  that 
could  not  be  curbed  was  sometimes  conjoined  with  a  fre- 
quently following  letter,  as  in  se  and  ce,  so  that  the  two 
would  appear  in  one  type.  Our  &,  fi,  fl,  ff,  ffi,  and  ffl, 
still  made  by  type-founders,  are  the  survivors  of  conjoin- 
ings  rated  by  old  copyists  as  real  graces  in  lettering.  There 
were  also  many  abbreviations  in  old  manuscripts  that  were 
afterward  rejected.  The  long  f  and  its  double  are  no  longer 
tolerated  in  modern  print;  even  classical  scholars  now  advise 
more  sparing  use  of  the  diphthongs.  The  tendency  is  to 
simplicity. 

Many  famous  early  books  show  one  size  of  type  only. 
The  16-point  Roman  in  the  facsimile  page  of  QuintiHan  was 
the  only  size  of  Roman  cut  by  Jenson.  This  font  of  type 
had  but  twenty-three  capital  letters,  for  J,  U,  and  W  were 
not  then  in  use.  His  lower-case  characters  were  twenty- six 
in  number :  u  served  as  a  substitute  for  v,  i  for  j ;  w  had 
not  then  been  accepted  in  the  Roman  alphabet ;  s  was  dupli- 
cated— long  f  serving  as  an  initial  or  medial  letter,  short  s 
for  the  final  letter.  The  diphthongs  ?e  and  ce  and  some  doubled 
characters  were  added,  as  in  fli,  fb,  ff,  (St,  and  Jenson 

148 


Many  characters  caused  needless  trouble 

did  not  abbreviate  words  in  print  with  the  freedom  of  his 
contemporaries,  but  he  did  use  accented  vowels  that  served 
for  abbreviations.  The  period,  colon,  and  interrogation  point 
were  his  marks  of  punctuation.  Bernard  says  that  for  an 
ordinary  book  seventy-three  characters  constituted  his  regular 
font  of  book  type,  without  Italic  or  small  capitals,  but 
for  scientific  work  he  did  make  a  few  physical  signs.  ^ 

Discretion  was  needed  by  the  copyist  selected  to  draw  or 
design  a  series  of  model  letters.  Exact  imitation  was  im- 
possible, but  a  cramped  or  distorted  letter  might  prove  a 
deformity.  There  is  no  evidence,  however,  that  a  qualified 
artist  was  ever  invited  to  remodel  the  lettering  of  a  manu- 
script selected  as  a  model.  Italy  then  had  many  artists 
who  painted  grand  pictures,  but  it  does  not  appear  that  any 
one  gave  consideration  to  the  forms  of  letters  used  in  type- 
making.^  To  design  or  remodel  the  two  series  of  Roman  in 
capitals  and  lower-case  on  squared  bodies  of  type  so  that  they 
could  be  combined  pleasingly  in  the  endless  combinations  of 
typography,  called  for  an  amount  of  study  and  experiment 
then  probably  regarded  by  the  artist  as  mechanical  drudgery. 

In  the  older  printed  books  types  were  set  together  with 
marked  closeness,  but  each  letter  of  the  regular  alphabet 
was  unmistakable  in  shape,  easy  to  read  and  understand. 
Varying  forms  of  the  same  letter  made  by  the  caUigrapher 
were  rarely  repeated  by  the  type-maker,  who  noted  too 
many  forms  in  manuscript.  The  cost  of  cutting  a  sepa- 
rate punch  for  each  character  was  great,  and  there  was  no 

'  In  number  this  is  but  about  one  third  of  in  1509.    The  geometric  rules  formulated 

the  characters  now  required  for  the  regula-  by  Albert  Diirer  for  their  scientific  and 

tion  font  of  book  type,  which  will  vary  for  artistic  construction  did  not  appear  before 

different  books  from  240  to  250  characters.  1524.    After  that  came  Geofroy  Tory  of 

2 The  sixteenth  century  came  before  artists  Paris  in  his  Champfleury  of  1529.  Other 

or  theorists  studied  lettering.    Attempts  to  theorists  followed,  but  their  rules,  too  often 

give  to  types  the  claimed  "  divine  propor-  arbitrary  and  dogmatic,  have  never  been  pre- 

tion  "  of  Paccioli  of  Venice  began  with  him  cisely  followed  by  practical  type-founders. 

149 


Printing  low  in  the  artistic  scale 

corresponding  advantage  to  printer  or  reader.  The  long  f 
and  final  s  had  been  accepted  for  centuries  as  established 
mannerisms,  and  the  combinations  of  these  and  other  letters 
on  one  body  were  unavoidably  so  made  to  prevent  hindrances 
in  type- casting  and  type-setting.  Graces  of  calligraphers  had 
to  be  scrupulously  avoided.  Head-bands,  side  borders,  center 
bands,  and  initial  letters  were  occasionally  attempted  for 
composed  pages  at  an  early  date,  but  it  was  generally  under- 
stood by  all  novices  in  printing  that  utility  was  of  more 
importance  than  decoration. 

Nor  was  the  eye  of  the  reader  distracted  and  the  intent 
of  the  writer  confused  by  unexpected  changes  in  the  form  of 
the  letters.  Italic  types  and  small  capitals  did  not  appear 
before  1501,  and  there  was  no  other  form  of  display  letter. 
Greek  characters  were  often  written  in  by  hand  or  separately 
engraved  when  presented  in  a  few  words.  Although  made 
by  Sweinheim,  Arabic  figures  were  not  then  rated  as  the 
needed  constituents  of  a  font  of  Roman  type.  The  few 
characters  then  produced  by  Jenson  were  supposed  to  be 
enough  for  the  proper  presentation  of  written  thought. 
Arabic  figures  and  medical  and  astronomical  signs  were 
made  only  when  sorely  needed. 

Early  Italian  printers  of  the  first  class  avoided  the  profuse 
use  of  contractions,  signs,  and  abbreviations.  When  it  could 
be  done,  words  were  spelled  out  at  length  with  precision; 
they  did,  however,  make  irregular  use  of  the  diphthongs  a3 
and  oe,  and  did  occasionally  abbreviate  to  prevent  the  over- 
turn of  broken  words. 

Printing  was  then  rated  as  one  of  the  liberal  arts,  but  its 
allowed  place  was  at  the  bottom  of  the  artistic  scale.  The 
calligrapher,  decorator,  and  illuminator  were  appraised  as 
superiors  of  the  typographer.    Collectors  of  taste  ah-eady 

150 


No  record  of  studies  or  experiments  with  types 

had  shown  an  aversion  to  printed  hooks  as  too  mechanical. 
Neither  the  printers  nor  their  moneyed  partners  ever  pur- 
posed a  competition  with  caUigraphers  and  miniaturists; 
their  object  was  to  print  books  that  would  be  salable  and 
useful.  Decoration  of  manuscript  by  rubrication  and  illumi- 
nation was  wisely  adjudged  out  of  reach. 

It  may  be  assumed  that  Jenson,  Ratdolt,  and  Renner  were 
competent  to  remodel  manuscript  letters  for  service  as  types; 
but  the  greater  number  of  early  master  printers  who  had  no 
aptitude  for  design  or  engraving  went  to  the  goldsmiths, 
who  were  supposed  to  unite,  at  least  in  some  degree,  the 
taste  of  the  artist  with  the  skill  of  a  mechanician.  Even  to 
the  goldsmith  type-making  presented  many  difficulties.  To  cut 
on  steel  an  alphabet  of  capitals  and  lower-case  for  types  with 
squared  bodies,  he  had  to  make  the  two  series  accord  as 
proper  mates.  He  had  to  fit  meeting  characters  with  great 
closeness,  yet  not  too  close,  so  that  they  could  be  readily 
interchangeable  and  be  pleasing  in  every  new  arrangement. 
To  make  the  structural  lines  of  different  letters  at  apparently 
equal  distance  and  yet  preserve  harmony  and  symmetry  in 
the  endless  combinations  of  types  was  not  an  easy  task. 
Many  types  had  to  be  made  by  geometric  rules,  but  some 
letters  were  unavoidably  drawn  in  evasion  or  in  partial 
disregard  of  these  arbitrary  rules. 

The  engraver  of  the  punch  imitated  the  letters  of  his  copy 
as  closely  as  type-founding  allowed,  but  he  imitated  largely 
in  the  spirit  of  the  type-setter  who  is  told  to  follow  copy. 
The  merit  of  the  letter  engraved  depended  largely  on  his  skill 
and  good  taste,  but  his  work  was  more  of  imitation  than  of 
design.  No  record  has  been  preserved  of  experiments  sup- 
posed to  have  been  made  by  any  early  printer  to  test  the 
intended  effect  of  a  proposed  face  of  letter.    The  notion  that 

151 


The  systematic  grading  of  sizes  overlooked 

a  new  face  was  the  outcome  of  a  study  of  types  made  for 
experiment  only,  under  changing  conditions  of  composition; 
that  letters  were  made  tall  or  short,  wide  or  narrow,  fi-om 
repeated  castings  of  different  model  letters,  to  give  the 
general  effect  produced  by  large  or  small  faces,  by  solid  or 
leaded  composition,  by  different  widths  or  extensions  of  thick 
stroke  and  hair-line,  by  tall  or  short  letters ;  and  that  experi- 
mental types  so  made  were  compared  in  trial  proofs  of  com- 
position from  types  specially  founded  for  this  purpose  only, 
will  not  stand  critical  examination.  There  is  no  record  of 
experimental  trials,  but  there  is  abundant  evidence  that  new 
fonts  were  often  made  in  haste  too  great  to  permit  of  any 
experiment. 

The  construction  of  the  mold  of  brass  or  steel  in  which  all 
the  types  of  a  book  must  be  cast  and  the  exact  fitting  of  the 
matrices  to  one  another  and  to  the  mold  were  fairly  done  by 
goldsmiths,  for  our  facsimiles  show  truly  squared  bodies, 
even  when  their  height  to  paper  is  apparently  uneven.  They 
failed  mainly  in  fitting  matrices  to  one  another,  and  in  the 
neglect  of  a  visible  uniformity.  There  was  no  concert  of 
action  between  different  type-makers;  a  generally  accepted 
standard  for  determining  with  system  uniformity  in  the 
bodies  of  type  was  never  considered.  Every  maker  of  a 
mold  was  a  law  to  himself,  and  determined  the  size  of  his 
type  without  regard  to  the  practice  of  rivals.  Types  cast 
from  one  mold  could  not  be  combined  with  those  made  in 
another  mold.  It  was  impossible  then  to  foresee  the  mischief 
that  this  independent  action  would  afterward  produce;  but 
it  now  seems  strange  that  a  systematic  grading  of  the  sizes 
of  type  was  not  attempted  before  it  was  devised  by  Fournier 
of  Paris  in  1737,  and  that  the  adoption  of  his  system  of 
points,  afterward  modified  by  Ambroise  Didot  of  Paris,  and 

152 


Metals  used  in  founding  types 

still  later  by  the  American  Type  Founders'  Company  in 
1886,  was  so  long  delayed.  This  irregular  and  independent 
action  of  type-founders,  persisted  in  for  centuries,  has  pro- 
duced a  confusion  from  which  printers  are  not  yet  fully  free. 

We  know  but  too  little  about  early  type-making,  yet,  if 
the  manuscript  of  the  Cost  Book  of  the  Ripoli  Press,  here 
often  noticed,  had  not  been  preserved  in  the  Magliabecchi 
Library  at  Florence,  we  should  know  less.  In  1781  P. 
Vincenzio  Fineschi  collected  the  more  noteworthy  items  and 
published  them  with  comments  in  the  form  of  a  thin  octavo 
under  the  title  of  Notizie  Storiche  Sopra  la  Stamperia  di 
Ripoli,  which  has  been  accepted  as  a  document  of  value  by 
all  writers  on  printing.  The  names  and 
prices  of  the  metals  used  in  the  type- 
foundry  of  the  Ripoli  Press,  as  recorded 
in  this  Cost  Book,  are  specified  in  the 
annexed  table. 

Some  of  the  facsimiles  here  presented 
show  types  of  an  irregular  width  of  face 
and  a  ruggedness  of  outline  that  seem 
to  indicate  a  careless  engraving  of  the  model  letter  on  the 
punch,  but  roughness  of  face  in  print  was  then  as  effectively 
produced  by  the  too  strong  impression  of  properly  cut  but 
overinked  types  upon  overdampened  paper  of  uneven  thick- 
ness. In  some  books  this  apparent  roughness  of  type  was 
caused  by  types  largely  of  lead,  cast  to  uneven  height  from 

'Lead,  which  has  always  been  the  chief  of  service  as  alloys  in  hardening  soft  metal 

constituent  of  type  metal,  was  used  liberally,  and  in  making  more  exact  casts  of  type, 

if  not  excessively,  by  early  Italian  printers.  Brass,  at  12  lire,  is  written  down  as  of 

Least  in  price,  it  was  greatest  in  quantity,  greatest  cost,  but  the  "metal,"  at  11  lire,  is 

The  blunting  of  types  after  wear  indicates  only  little  less.    The  prices  seem  small,  but 

the  weakness  of  soft  metal.  Steel,  brass,  and  the  purchasing  power  of  money  was  then 

copper  were  needed  for  punches,  molds,  and  much  greater.    Equivalents    in  American 

matrices  ;   tin   and  "  metal  "  (not  clearly  currency  are  impracticable,  for  authorities  on 

specified,  but  supposed  to  be  antimony)  were  fifteenth-century  currency  seriously  differ. 

153 


lire 

soldi 

Steel     .  , 

.  2 

8 

Metal    .  . 

,  11 

Brass    .  , 

,  12 

Copper  .  , 

,  6 

8 

Tin       .  , 

.  8 

Lead^    .  , 

.  2 

4 

Iron  Wire 

.  8 

Cheapening  of  methods  and  materials 

matrices  of  soft  metal.  Punches  of  steel,  matrices  of  copper, 
and  molds  of  brass  or  iron  were  approved  at  a  very  early 
date  as  the  proper  metals  for  these  tools  for  type-making, 
but  there  were  then  amateurs  who  tried  to  invent  quicker 
methods  and  cheaper  materials,  to  use  softer  metal  and  even 
hard  wood  for  the  punch  and  hardened  lead  for  the  matrix. 
With  these  imperfect  implements  it  was  intended  to  manu- 
facture types  at  greater  speed  and  reduced  expense  that  could 
be  used  with  advantage  for  cheaper  books.  Matrices  of  lead 
were  not  unknown  even  in  the  eighteenth  centmy.^  Rugged- 
ness  in  types  would  soon  come  fi'om  a  matrix  of  soft  metal 
even  when  it  had  been  struck  from  a  carefully  engraved 
punch  of  hard  metal. 

Though  much  admired,  the  new  art  of  copperplate  printing 
did  not  supplant  nor  even  diminish  the  demand  for  type. 
The  copperplate  method  did  produce  beautiful  prints,  maps, 
and  decoration,  but  always  in  the  form  of  single  leaves. 
It  could  not  make  readable  books,  but  it  did  this  good  ser- 
vice: it  compelled  printers  to  be  more  careful  and  to  plan 
their  books  with  new  features  of  attractiveness.  Woodcuts 
with  clear  lines  gradually  followed  the  appearance  of  neat 
prints  fi'om  copperplate ;  borders  and  initial  letters  of  greater 
delicacy  became  more  frequent,  and  the  needless  roughness  of 
the  earlier  types  received  new  refinements.    Punches  were 

'"Leaden  matrices"  are   specified  in  a  I'lmprimerie,  vol.  i,  p.  42,  gives  illustrations 

description  of  these  tools  for  making  types  of  types  cast  with  imperfect  material  and  by 

of  large  size  in  the  printed  catalogue  of  the  rude  methods,  at  the  rate  of  one  thousand  in 

auction  sale  at  London  in  June,  1782,  of  the  one  day. 

type-foundry  of  John  James  of  that  city.        The  sturdy  ruggedness  of  some  early  types 

They  are  also  specifically  mentioned,  "typi  was  not  of  set  purpose  to  produce  an  intended 

aenei  et  matrices  plumbese,"  in  the  catalogue  superior  artistic  effect  in  print.    There  are 

of  John  Enschede,  Haarlem,  1768.    In  his  evidences  that  this  rudeness  was  caused  by 

Autobiography  Benjamin  Franklin  says  he  a  desire  to  cheapen  the  cost  of  types.  The 

made  "puncheons"  and  struck  them  in  lead,  advantages  of  printing  Avere  imperiled  at  the 

with  which  he  produced  matrices  for  the  start  by  this  desire  to  hasten  and  cheapen 

casting  of  a  few  types  that  were  deficient.  production.    Tlie  meanness  of  some  modern 

Bernard  in  his  De  I'Origine  et  des  Debuts  de  printing  is  due  to  the  same  cause. 

154 


Light  and  bold  faces  alternately  in  vogue 

engraved  with  sharper  Hnes  and  thinner  stems;  matrices 
were  more  truly  justified  and  accurately  alined,  and  types 
were  cast  with  sharper  edges  and  of  even  height  to  paper. 
The  hair-line  of  the  copperplate,  so  easily  produced  on  that 
surface,  had  been  the  envy  and  despair  of  the  type  printer, 
who  in  attempting  imitation  too  forcibly  impressed  types 
largely  of  lead  against  damp  and  rough  paper;  but  Renner 
and  Ratdolt  showed  that  although  a  perfect  imitation  was 
out  of  reach,  it  was  possible  to  engrave  punches  with  more 
delicacy,  and  to  produce  acceptable  prints  from  types  that 
were  of  metal  softer  than  copper. 

Many  of  the  small  types  produced  at  the  close  of  the 
fifteenth  century  were  black,  bold,  and  compact,  yet  not 
entirely  satisfactory  to  the  reader.  The  lli-point  of  de 
Zanis  in  his  edition  of  Plutarch's  Lives,  and  the  still  smaller 
sizes  then  made  by  other  printers,  fairly  indicate  a  preference 
by  some  readers  for  more  firmness  of  face.  Familiarity  with 
the  Gothic  character  had  induced  the  erroneous  belief  that 
to  be  distinct  types  must  be  very  black.  ^ 

Attempts  were  occasionally  made  to  found  types  that 
would  repeat  the  delicate  lettering  of  expert  penmen  and 
engravers  on  copper,  but  the  imitation  did  not  go  far  enough. 


'The  need  of  a  relief  of  white  space  within 
and  without  each  type  to  serve  as  a  proper 
contrasting  background  for  thick  strokes  of 
black-faced  types,  was  imperfectly  under- 
stood by  some  early  type-founders.  The 
relatively  broad  lane  of  white  between  lines 
of  composed  type  that  had  been  produced  by 
the  early  printers  of  large  types  was  effec- 
tively narrowed  by  their  shortening  of  as- 
cenders and  descenders  for  bodies  of  12-point 
and  smaller  sizes.  The  round  letters  of  the 
Roman  lower-case  were  compressed  laterally 
by  many  type-founders,  but  not  always  to 
improvement.  This  compression  of  letters 
was  given  only  to  the  lower-case  characters; 
capitals  were  never  made  visibly  thinner  or 


condensed;  to  many  founders  this  change 
then  seemed  an  unwarrantable  liberty. 

The  bold  and  black  types  of  de  Zanis  and 
of  rivals  in  Italy  who  imitated  his  bold-faced 
style  did  not  long  remain  in  fashion.  Letters 
of  lighter  face  returned  to  meet  renewed 
favor  and  ever  since  have  had  capricious  ap- 
proval—  liked  to-day,  disliked  to-morrow. 
Yet  the  fallacy  is  frequently  revived  that  the 
readability  of  print  depends  largely  on  a 
quantity  of  ink.  At  intervals  some  new  bold 
face  of  type  will  be  produced  to  please  a  criti- 
cal publisher  because  it  is  new  and  supposed 
to  be  more  distinct  than  any  prevailing  light 
face  and  is  an  acceptable  change  from  the 
old  monotonous  uniformity. 


155 


Type-making  became  a  separate  art 

The  very  slight  compression  of  the  lighter- faced  Romans 
afterward  made  by  Ratdolt  and  Renner  did  not  receive  from 
buyers  the  full  approval  expected. 

The  letter  that  seemed  beautiful  in  the  manuscript  that 
contained  the  model  of  a  desired  type  did  not  always  prove  so 
beautiful  in  its  imitation  in  type,  for  goldsmiths  who  under- 
took to  draw  letters,  cut  the  punches,  and  fit  up  the  matrices 
were  sometimes  unequal  to  the  task. 

The  facsimiles  here  presented  display  unequal  abiUty. 
Some  letters  were  roughly  cut  on  the  punch,  imperfectly 
struck  in  matrices,  badly  justified  and  fitted  to  the  mold, 
and  cast  therefrom  with  similar  carelessness.  Yet  books 
were  occasionally  produced  hymen  who  gave  an  intelligent 
supervision  to  type-founding  in  every  stage,  from  the  draw- 
ing of  the  letter  to  the  printing  of  the  types.  There  were 
printers  of  no  celebrity  who  made  or  had  made  for  them  types 
with  a  cleanness,  sharpness,  and  precision  greater  than  that 
of  others  who  stand  higher  on  the  honor  roll.  It  must  be 
noted  that  some  types  of  Hahn  and  Herolt  of  Rome, 
Miscomini  of  Florence,  and  of  Ratdolt  and  Renner  in  Venice, 
were  more  correctly  made  and  carefully  printed  than  those 
of  the  printers  of  more  famous  books. 

Unsuccessfnl  practice  in  type-making  had  to  be  continued 
for  many  years  before  it  was  plainly  demonstrated  that  type- 
founding  should  be  a  distinct  craft  controlled  by  specially 
educated  workmen.  The  separation  of  printing  from  type- 
making  was  accomplished  dm-ing  the  first  half  of  the  six- 
teenth century  in  Paris  and  by  Claude  Garamond.  Printers 
then  discovered  that  they  could  practise  printing  with  more 
success  if  they  did  not  have  to  attend  to  the  minor  details 
of  type-making  and  that  they  could  be  benefited  by  the 
experience  of  the  few  men  who  made  types  a  life  study. 

156 


Shallow  counters  a  common  fault 

Old  books  enough  have  been  preserved  to  permit  the  study 
of  their  mechanical  construction,  but  the  printing  types  that 
made  them  books  have  disappeared.  Many  were  destroyed 
as  old-fashioned  and  no  longer  acceptable  to  book  buyers, 
but  more  were  condemned  to  the  melting  pot  as  hopelessly 
worn  out  even  when  they  were  still  rated  as  of  good  style. 
A  study  of  old  types  from  the  types  themselves  is,  therefore, 
difl&cult.  The  Plantin-Moretus  Museum  at  Antwerp  contains 
a  scant  but  probably  the  fullest  exhibit  of  types  in  use  after 
1600.  A  critical  examiner  of  these  types  will  admire  the 
ingenuity  of  the  old  designer  of  letters,  but  he  will  not  be 
favorably  impressed  with  the  work  of  the  punch-cutters  and 
type-casters.  He  will  object  to  their  rough  workmanship 
and  especially  to  the  shallowness  of  the  counters  or  hollows 
in  the  faces  of  the  letters.  This  would  not  be  a  new  com- 
plaint. Fertel,  a  French  printer^  of  1723,  says  that  the 
counters  of  some  new  types  of  his  time  were  of  no  greater 
depth  than  the  thickness  of  a  sheet  of  strong  paper.  Fournier 
records  that  the  counter  for  ordinary  book  types  should  be 
"one  fourth  of  a  geometric  line."^  This  depth  of  the 
counter,  about  the  fiftieth  of  an  English  inch,  was  tolerated 
by  all  the  early  printers,  but  it  would  not  be  allowed  now  in 
any  type-foundry  of  reputation.  So  treated,  open  letters 
like  a  and  e,  with  a  central  cross- stroke,  were  liable  to  be 
filled  with  excess  of  ink;  they  would  soon  flatten  and  be 
indistinct  when  cast  with  soft  type  metal. 

'Fertel,  Martin  Dominique,  La  Science  This  work,  generously  planned  and  carefully 

pratique  de  I'lraprimerie,  4to,  St.  Omer,  treated,  does  not  mention  a  micrometer  or 

1723.  any  tool  of  precision.    It  is  to  be  inferred 

^Fournier,  P.  S.,  Manuel  Typographique,  that  distrusted  types  were  tested  largely  by 

small  16mo,  Paris,  1764,  2  vols.,  pp.  12,  13.  sight  and  touch. 


157 


PRINTING  INK 


Every  early  printer  had  to  compound  with  his  own  hands, 
or  have  compounded  for  him,  the  ink  he  needed  for  his  books. 
He  could  not  buy  ink  ready  made  as  merchandise.  More 
than  a  century  elapsed  before  the  manufacture  of  printing 
ink  became  a  distinct  trade.  The  mechanical  mixing  of 
smoke-black  and  other  ingredients  with  linseed  oil  previously 
prepared  by  boiling,  a  most  disagreeable  part  of  the  busi- 
ness, was  a  duty  not  to  be  hurried  or  unthinkingly  intrusted 
to  a  heedless  workman.  To  produce  an  ink  that  would  be 
permanently  black,  smoothly  coating  inking  balls  and  easily 
applied  to  types,  sticking  to  paper  after  impression,  drying 
quickly  and  not  transferring  grime  to  the  fingers  or  to  the 
facing  leaf,  demanded  the  intelligent  supervision  of  a  fully 
qualified  master  printer. 

Experience  in  practical  presswork  was  needed.  Ink  had 
to  be  compounded  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  paper. 
The  stiffs  ink  that  might  produce  clear  print  on  rough-faced 
and  hard- sized  linen  paper  would  not  be  suitable  on  soft 
and  cottony  fabrics  that  were  unsized.  Papers  dampened 
too  much  or  too  little,  and  vellum  skins  alternately  with 
greasy  and  limy  surfaces,  taxed  the  resourcefulness  of  the 
pressman  and  often  compelled  him  to  retemper  his  ink. 

Linseed  oil,  after  its  proper  preparation  by  boiling,  had 
then  been  used  for  a  short  time  by  artists  of  the  fifteenth 
century  as  the  most  serviceable  vehicle  for  the  carriage  and 
transfer  of  colors,  and  early  printers  readily  accepted  it 
as  the  best  substance  for  incorporation  with  smoke-black. 
There  always  were  different  formulas  for  the  manufacture  of 

159 


Approved  constituents  in  early  printing  ink 

printing  ink,  but  its  more  important  ingredients  were  then 
well  known  and  are  here  repeated  in  the  following  extract 
from  the  Cost  Book  of  the  Ripoli  Press. 

Every  printer  compounded  these  substances,  and  possibly 
some  others,  to  suit  his  own  notions  of  appropriateness.  As 
these  ingredients  had  no  chemical  affinity  one  for  the  other, 
the  mixture  was  truly  mechanical,  exacting  skill,  patience, 
and  a  regulated  heat  for  the  production  of  a  satisfactory 
ink,  but  the  mixture  had  to  be  varied  to  suit  different  kinds 
of  paper.  In  many  early  books  the  printing  ink  has  with- 
stood hard  tests  of  time  and  ex- 
posure, keeping  unchanged  its 
needed  blackness.  Other  old 
books  there  are  in  which  the 
ink,  seemingly  black  enough  and 
sometimes  excessively  black, 
does  not  fairly  stick  to  the  paper ; 
in  some,  the  ink  "offsets"  and 
is  partially  transferred  to  the  fac- 
ing leaf;  the  black  color  soils 
the  fingers,  and  print  so  pro- 
duced may  even  now  be  seriously 
weakened  and  defaced  by  a  moist  sponge.  These  faults  be- 
tray an  unwise  selection  of  cheaper  materials,  or  show  igno- 
rance, haste,  and  carelessness  in  manufacture.  One  fault  of 
ink  is  of  later  date,  the  yellow  stain  of  spreading  oil  about 
each  letter,  a  fault  not  common  before  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, being  almost  unknown  in  early  books. 

'Smoke-black,  the  important  ingredient       ^Gallnuts  were  then  a  necessary  ingredient 

of  black  ink,  is  not  specifically  mentioned,  in  writing  ink  and  may  have  been  regarded 

but  it  is  to  be  supposed  that  the  printers  as  of  value  for  producing  a  needed  perma- 

made  it  from  burning  the  pitch.  nency  in  print.    Cinnabar,  a  red  sulphid  of 

^The  utility  of  marcasite,  a  sulphurous  mercury,  was  the  base  of  the  early  red  ink. 

oxid  of  iron,  is  not  apparent.  It  is  now  better  known  as  vermilion. 

160 


Linseed  oil,  barrel 
Turpentine,  per  lb. 
Resin  pitch  . 
Pitch,  black  ^ 
Marcasite^ 
Cinnabar  .  . 
Resin,  per  lb. 
Varnish,  solid 
Varnish,  liquid 
Gallnuts'  .  . 
Vitriol  .  . 
Gum  lac  .  . 


lire  soldi 

3  10 
4 
4 

1  8 
3 
5 
3 
8 
12 
4 
4 

3  4 


Ink-making  now  a  distinct  craft 

It  should  never  be  forgotten  that  blackness  or  paleness  of 
print  is  not  entirely  due  to  the  ink;  it  was  largely  con- 
trolled by  the  pressman  and  by  the  selection  and  preparation 
of  paper  that  should  have  been  purposely  made  or  selected 
to  imbibe  and  retain  color.  Impression  was  another  con- 
trolling factor;  an  inexpert  workman  could  make  the  print 
of  a  proper  ink  seem  smeary  and  grimy,  or  gray  and  feeble ; 
he  was  expected  to  regulate  impression  to  suit  differing  resis- 
tances of  hard,  soft,  or  damp  paper. 

Superior  blackness  has  been  claimed  for  early  print,  and 
there  are  old  books  that  justify  this  praise ;  but  in  most  ex- 
amples offered  the  ink  seems  blacker  because  it  was  too 
liberally  applied  to  types  of  large  size  with  thick  lines  that 
favored  the  reception  of  dense  color.  The  same  ink  applied 
to  our  modern  thin-faced  and  sharp-lined  type  would  seem 
relatively  pale  or  gray.  All  the  ingredients  specified  by  the 
Ripoli  Press  are  known  to  modern  manufacturers  of  printing 
ink,  who  have  added  to  them  other  substances  approved  by 
long  experience,  with  improved  machinery  and  methods  of 
value.  The  compounding  of  printing  ink  is  now  a  separate 
trade,  to  the  greater  benefit  of  book  printing.  He  who  works 
at  ink-making  daily  for  years  to  meet  the  different  require- 
ments of  different  kinds  of  paper  should  make  ink  more 
satisfactory  in  quality  than  could  have  been  produced  by  the 
early  printer  to  whom  ink-making  was  an  occasional  duty. 

The  inking  of  early  types  was  often  accidentally  irregular. 
The  types  of  the  Lactantius  printed  at  Subiaco  are  overcolored, 
really  thick  and  muddy  on  many  pages.  In  the  Quintilian 
of  Jenson  the  types  have  not  been  inked  enough.  It  may 
be  that  Jenson  directed  the  hand  pressmen  to  underink  the 
types,  by  which  treatment  they  would  more  clearly  show  in 
print  the  clear,  sharp  lines  of  his  clever  engraving  and  the 

161 


Black  or  pale  print  contr^olled  by  pressman 

more  inviting  openness  of  his  cut  of  Roman  letter.  In  books 
he  afterward  printed  on  types  of  Gothic  form  he  designed  and 
engraved  them  to  show  black  ink  with  prodigality.^  Dif- 
ferences in  the  inking  of  types  hmnored  popular  prejudices. 
The  buyer  of  a  devotional  manual  craved  the  blackness  in 
print  that  seemed  to  give  to  it  the  somberness  suitable  to  the 
subject-matter;  to  a  buyer  of  different  taste  a  book  in  Roman 
letter  was  more  acceptable  when  it  was  relatively  pale  in 
color  and  conveyed  a  feeling  of  lightness  and  delicacy  that 
was  much  desired. 

In  compounding  their  colored  inks  early  printers  were  not 
entirely  successful.  Rubricated  words  and  lines  in  a  text 
of  black  are  often  of  dingy  color,  showing  types  choked 
with  a  pasty  ink,  the  ingredients  of  which  had  not  been 
properly  mixed.  The  register  of  red  ink  with  black  ink  in 
a  rubricated  text  is  remarkably  good  when  we  consider  the 
crude  process  and  the  defects  of  the  old  hand  press  tlien  in 
common  use  for  printing  in  two  colors.  Pleasing  color  in 
red  ink  presswork  appears  to  most  advantage  in  broad  sur- 
faces, as  in  the  device  of  Jenson  (plate  17)  or  in  the  larger 
letters  used  for  initials.  On  types  of  small  size  the  red  may 
be  smeary,  as  in  the  Decretals  of  Torresano  (plate  18). 

Ink  was  dabbed  on  the  types  fi-om  stuffed  leather  baUs,  as 
may  be  seen  in  the  annexed  illustrations  of  the  hand  press 
(page  189).  Their  curved  surfaces  when  forcibly  rocked 
against  one  another  equally  distributed  the  ink,  but  the  quan- 
tity applied  was  largely  at  the  discretion  of  the  inker ;  it  might 
be  too  much  or  too  little,  and  the  color  might  be  variable  on 
the  pages  of  the  same  book. 

'  The  types  of  the  Decretals  of  (Iregory,  i)rinted  by  AndreAV  Torresano  in  the  blacker 
shown  in  a  facsimile  (plate  18)  on  another  style  of  Jenson  and  arc  ciiiiscijuently  black- 
page,  probably  Tuade  by  John  Herbort  of  ened  too  much  in  i)riiit,  but  this  gloominess 
Selingenstadt  under  Jenson's  direction,  were  was  probably  pleasing  to  the  buyer. 

162 


PAPER 


Without  paper  typography  could  have  given  small  service; 
it  came  fitly  before  printing.  In  the  fifteenth  centm-y  old 
and  crude  writing  materials  were  out  of  use ;  writers  of  the 
fourteenth  century  had  put  aside  forever  the  brittle  papyrus 
of  Egypt  and  the  wax  tablets  of  old  Rome.  Parchment  and 
vellum,  never  in  a  full  supply,  were  becoming  scarcer.  For 
more  than  a  century  there  was  no  proper  substitute  at  hand. 
The  only  substance  in  every  way  adapted  for  printing  was 
the  paper  that  then  had  begun  to  come  from  the  Far  East. 
Fabrics  of  slender  and  elastic  vegetable  fibers,  thin  and  of 
smooth  surface,  known  as  satin  paper,  had  been  used  in 
China  for  printing  purposes  at  an  unfixed  early  date,  prob- 
ably 170  B.C.  In  Persia  this  satin  paper  afterward  became 
an  approved  material  for  manuscript  books,  and  was  there 
made  up  in  the  convenient  form  of  folded  and  sewed  leaves 
which  the  Western  World  soon  learned  to  imitate.  The 
practice  of  making  paper  gradually  spread  to  Europe  through 
Arabia,  Constantinople,  Spain,  Sicily,  and  Italy.  Between 
the  years  1000  and  1400,  in  the  hands  of  European  paper- 
makers,  cotton  rags  were  accepted  as  the  most  available 
substitute  for  the  barks  or  fibers  of  the  Orient. 

This  new  cotton  paper  was  purposely  made  to  resemble 
parchment  in  smoothness  of  surface  and  flexibility;  it  was 
known  as  charta  bombycina,  Greek  parchment,  and  parch- 
ment cloth.  When  properly  sized  it  was  used  for  ordinary 
writings  and  correspondence,  but  I  do  not  find  trustworthy 
testimony  that  cotton  paper  was  taken  for  manuscript  books 
of  merit  at  an  early  date.  Linen  paper  has  always  been 
preferred  for  its  claimed  superior  dm-ability. 

1G3 


Linen  and  cottm,  sized  and  unsized  paper 


At  what  date  paper  from  linen  rags  was  first  made  is  still  in 
controversy;^  but  it  is  generally  conceded  that  dm'ing  the 
latter  half  of  the  fourteenth  century  linen  paper  was  largely 
made  and  well  made  in  the  mills  of  Italy."  The  most  valued 
feature  of  writing-paper  was  its  adaptation  to  the  service  of 
the  penman,  for  which  pm*pose  it  was  "sized"  in  manufacture 
by  washing  or  bathing  it  with  a  very  thin  film  of  glutinous 
water.  Each  sheet,  during  an  early  stage  of  its  manufacture, 
while  still  moist  but  firm  enough  to  be  safely  handled,  was 
separately  dipped  in  a  tub  of  gluey  water  and  afterward  dried 
in  airy  lofts  from  overhead  bars  or  poles.  This  dipping  and 
drying  treatment,  known  as  sizing,  added  to  the  cost  of  the 
manufacture,  but  it  gave  additional  strength  and  hardness 
to  the  paper,  and  enabled  it  to  take  fluid  ink  from  the  pen 
in  clear  lines  without  blotting.  The  phrases  "tub- sized"  and 
"loft-dried"  are  still  used  to  describe  thorough  workmanship 
in  the  making  of  writing-paper. 

Sizing,  although  of  service  to  the  penman,  was  of  slight 
benefit  to  the  printer;  it  materially  increased  the  cost  of 
paper  and  added  a  hard  surface  wearing  upon  types. 

'A  fragment  of  paper  from  a  document  The  paper  in  tlie  Gutenberg  Bible  of 
dated  1216  is  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Arthur  Forty-two  Lines  (c.  1455)  is  of  cardboard 
D.  Little  of  Boston.  A  micro-photograph  thickness,  while  that  of  Eggestein's  De- 
proves  that  this  paper  was  of  linen  fiber,  cretals  (c.  1471)  is  thinner  but  of  a  rough 

^Printing  paper  made  in  Italy  was  not  face.    The  large  types  and  thick  leaves  of 

like  that  of  northern  Europe.    The  thick  and  the  bulky  books*  made  by  Koburger,  Zainer, 

rough-faced  papers  of  Germany  and  Holland  Richel,  and  other  famous  printers  of  Ger- 

are  rare  in  early  Italian  books.    Thomas  many,  gradually  compelled  the  giving  of 

Fuller  (1608-1661),  an  English  historian  more  attention  to  greater  thinness  in  printing 

and  divine,  thus  describes  the  different  quali-  paper,  but  the  German  paper-makers  were 

ties:  "Paper  participates  in  some  sort  of  the  somewhat  slow  to  imitate  the  very  smooth 

character  of  the  countries  which  make  it;  papers  made  by  the  Italians.    The  sturdy 

the  Venetian  being  neat,  subtile,  and  court-  roughness,  hunipiness,  and  the  needlessly 

like;  the  French  light,  slight,  and  slender;  visible  wire  marks  of  the  "laid"  papers  that 

and  the  Dutch  thick,  corpulent,  and  gross,  are  now  frequently  found  in  many  of  the 

sucking  up  the  ink  with  the  sponginess  reprints  of  old  books,  or  in  imitations  of 

thereof."    This  last  clause  fairly  indicates  old  mannerisms  of  paper-making,  are  seldom 

that  during  the  sixteenth  century  unsized  noticeable  in  books  from  the  early  Italian 

paper  was  in  common  usage.    See  note  on  presses.    A  list  of  papers  used  in  Italy  will 

page  111.  be  found  on  page  166. 

1G4 


Grass  and  wood  now  used  for  papers 

To  lessen  the  wear  and  make  the  sheet  more  pliable  under 
impression,  printers  had  to  dampen  sized  paper  before  it  could 
be  neatly  printed;  but  dampening  was  not  always  success- 
ful. If  the  dampened  sheet  was  unevenly  thick,  if  it  had  a 
rough  face  and  was  overdampened,  and  if  a  thin  ink  had  been 
used  with  strong  impression,  the  sheet  would  show  a  mussy 
print,  damaging  to  the  appearance  of  the  type  and  to  the 
reputation  of  the  printer  or  type-founder.  Paper -makers 
were  gradually  induced  to  make  paper  for  new  books  with 
weaker  sizing  and  sometimes  to  omit  all  sizing.  Half- sized 
or  unsized  paper  did  not  call  for  so  much  care  in  its  prepara- 
tory treatment  for  work  on  press.  Properly  treated  by  the 
printer,  unsized  paper  showed  the  impression  of  type  with 
even  greater  sharpness  and  clearness.  In  the  production  of 
cheaper  books  unsized  paper  was  of  service.  To  readers 
who  did  not  intend  to  annotate  the  margins  with  a  pen,  it 
was  especially  welcome.  A  growing  demand  for  cheap  books 
compelled  the  use  of  unsized  paper  even  in  the  editions  that 
are  now  rated  as  of  real  value.  Time  proved  that  under  ordi- 
nary conditions  unsized  paper  maintains  desired  durability. 

The  hard,  rough  surface  and  tough  fibers  of  modern  hand- 
made papers  are  now  disliked  by  copperplate  printers,  lithog- 
raphers, and  color  printers  by  any  process;  their  superior 
workmanship  is  best  shown  on  unsized  paper  that  is  pliable 
and  easily  adaptable  to  every  stroke  of  the  graver. 

Paper  made  fi'om  cotton  rags  was  the  common  staple  for 
years,  but  it  has  always  been  adjudged  inferior  to  linen. 
Papers  made  from  grass  and  prepared  wood  are  now  serving 
in  place  of  the  old  cotton  fibers.  The  old  papers  had 
greater  strength,  for  early  makers  knew  little  about  and 
made  small  use  of  the  chemical  agents  now  used,  quick 
in  action,  but  that  may  seriously  weaken  the  fibers  of  paper 

165 


Papers  supplied  to  early  Italian  printers 

stock.  Linen  rags  were  always  preferred  by  the  old  paper- 
makers  when  they  had  been  sufficiently  prepared  for  pulp  by 
protracted  bleaching  in  the  sunlight. 

Vellum  and  parchment  were  also  used  by  the  scribes  or 
writers  of  manuscripts,  but  their  cost  was  greater,  and  they 

,^   ^  ^.  ,  were  not  pleasing  surfaces 

(in  lolio  per  ream)  .        ,       .  ^  „ 

lire  soldi  to  early  printers,  lor  some 

Grand  paper  of  Bologna  .  6  8  vellums  resisted  ink  and 
Middle-size  paper    .    .    .    3  10        .^^^^  ^  ^^^^^1^^^  ^^^^^^ 

Small  paper   3  mi        n    i.       ^  ii 

-r,        r.  n  11  «  l^he  collector  ol  vellums 

Paper  of  Colle     ....  2  6 

Fabriano  paper,  mark  of  ^^^^^  copies  among 

cross-bow   3  6  early  editions.^ 

Paper  of  Prato    ....  2  10      The  Cost  Book  of  the 

Fabriano  paper/ mark  of  cross  2  6  J^ipoH  Press  specifies  the 

^^s'^'' . .  2 18     p^^,  ^T^' 

Pescia  paper,  mark  of  gloves  2    8       P^P^^*  ^^^^^  ^^i'  I^^l^af 

printing  houses  in  1480." 

Paper  selected  for  the  early  book,  always  of  small  size,  was 

seldom  exact  or  fairly  square.    It  always  had  deckle  or 

ragged  edges.    Dipped  up  from  a  tub  of  semi-fluid  pulp  upon 

4n  1568  Christopher  Plantin  of  Antwerp  Plantin,   deuxieme   edition,  Anvers,  4to, 

began  a  grand  edition  of  the  Polyglot  Bible  1890,  p.  138. 

in  eight  huge  volumes,  for  which,  to  please       The  price  of  copies  for  this  Polj-glot  varied 

different  tastes,  many  kinds  of  paper  had  with  the  quality  of  the  paper,  from  70  to  200 

been  selected.    There  were  to  be  twelve  florins.    The  liighest  price  for  a  copy  on 

hundred  sets  on  different  kinds  of  paper  and  paper  was  for  one  printed  on  the  imperial 

thirteen  sets  on  vellum ;  but  the  vellum  sets  paper  of  Italy. 

had  been  reserved  for  the  King  of  Spain  and       ^As  the  sizes  and  weights  of  the  papers 

a  few  ecclesiastical  dignitaries.   The  Duke  of  are  not  specified,  a  comparison  of  prices 

Bavaria  had  requested  a  copy  on  vellum  and  cannot  be  made  with  papers  of  modern 

had  offered  to  Plantin  one  hundred  florins  to  manufacture. 

cover  the  extra  cost  of  the  vellum.    Plantin       ^The  paper  mill  which  is  at  Fabriano 

declined  the  proposal,  saying  that  all  of  is  supposed  to  have  been  established  in 

the  copies  on  vellum  had  been  previously  the  fourteenth  century ;  it  still  continues  its 

pledged  to  subscribers.    He  offered  the  duke  service  in  an  acceptable  manner  to  many 

one  of  the  copies  on  the  imperial  paper  of  publishers  and  readers.    It  has  frequently 

Italy,  which  he  said  were  more  beautiful  furnished  the  paper  for  some  of  the  publi- 

and  even  better   printed   than  were  the  cations  of  the  Grolicr  Club  of  the  City  of 

copies  on  vellum.    ]\Iax  Rooses,  Christophe  New  York. 

166 


Hand-made  papers  of  rough  edges 

an  inclosed  mesh  of  woven  wire  (through  which  the  surplus 
of  water  escaped),  the  retained  pulp  strayed  outward  irreg- 
ularly toward  the  inclosed  rim.  The  deft  hand  and  trained 
eye  of  the  workman  kept  this  irregularity  within  acceptable 
bounds,  but  they  could  not  make  the  sheet  exact  as  to  size. 
As  hand-made  paper  is  still  manufactured  according  to  old 
usage,  a  perceptible  variation  in  the  dimensions  continues  to 
be  noticeable.  A  ream  of  modern  hand-made  paper  sold  as 
16  X  20  inches  will  show  variations  of  from  one  eighth  to  one 
half  inch  in  width  and  length,  and  in  some  reams  the  varia- 
tion may  be  greater. 

Early  papers  were  not  only  irregular  as  to  size  but  were 
somewhat  rhomboidal  as  to  form.  Deckle  edges  were  tolerated 
as  an  unavoidable  attachment,  as  is  the  fringed  end  of  a  rug 
or  the  colored  strip  on  the  side  of  a  bolt  of  broadcloth.  They 
were  not  needed  by  old  printers,  for  they  made  folded  paper 
thicker  at  the  outer  edges  than  in  the  middle  of  the  sheet 
and  consequently  unsightly  on  the  fore  edge  of  the  book. 
They  were  relentlessly  cut  off  by  the  binder,  with  the  ap- 
proval of  printer  and  book  buyer,  and  are  seldom  found  in  any 
old  bound  book.  It  is  only  in  the  modern  edition  de  luxe, 
which  publishers  propose  to  give  to  buyers  as  the  printed 
leaf  just  as  it  comes  fi-om  the  pressman,  that  the  deckle  edge 
is  preserved  as  a  voucher  of  the  genuineness  of  its  hand-made 
fabric.  This  fad  declined  in  favor  when  it  was  shown  that 
an  imitated  deckle  edge  could  be  produced  on  machine-made 
paper. 

Although  the  deckle  edge  was  of  no  advantage  to  any  one, 
wide  margins  were  approved  by  the  studious,  for  they  were 
needed  for  annotation  and  correction.  An  early  professor  at 
Paris  said  that  the  manuscript  books  of  his  time  were  be- 
coming corrupt  and  sometimes  unintelligible  through  the 

167 


Many  qualities  of  printing  paper 

ignorance  or  carelessness  of  their  copyists.  The  only  remedy 
was  correction  with  the  pen  of  the  buyer.  In  one  of  his 
letters  Erasmus  says :  "They  do  not  love  books  who  neglect  to 
correct  errors  in  the  text  and  do  not  busy  themselves  by  night 
and  day  in  making  needed  annotations  in  the  margin."^ 

The  size  of  paper  selected  by  the  early  printer  of  a  book 
may  be  determined  by  Pollard's-  method  for  computing  the 
amount  of  blank  paper  with  its  deckle  edge  that  successive 
generations  of  binders  have  succeeded  in  cutting  away  from 
the  margins.  "If  a  half  (or  rather  less)  be  added  to  the 
height  of  a  type  page,  and  a  half  (or  rather  more)  to  its 
breadth,  we  have  a  very  fair  approximation  to  the  size  of  an 
uncut  copy." 

The  admitted  inferiority  of  much  recent  printing  is  largely 
owing  to  the  inferior  constituents  of  our  cheaper  printing 
papers.  During  the  last  fifty  years  straw,  grass,  wood,  and 
other  vegetable  fibers  have  been  successfully  treated  for  this 
purpose.  To  the  inexpert,  papers  from  these  substances  may 
seem  sightly,  and  promise  to  be  as  serviceable  as  those  made 
from  linen  and  cotton.  They  are  to  be  had  in  many  styles, 
and  always  at  a  tempting  reduction  below  the  price  of  better 
paper.  Other  sophistications  have  been  successful.  A  very 
thin  web  of  wood  fiber  can  be  thickened  with  a  coating  of 
burnished  whitewash  that  gives  to  it  the  smooth  surface  of 
satin,  or  a  thicker  web  can  be  cunningly  roughened  up  with 
wire  marks  in  parallels,  stiffened  with  sizing  and  frayed  at 
its  edges  so  that  it  may  pass  for  a  genuine  hand-made  paper. 
These,  and  many  other  kinds  of  paper,  will  receive  printing 
ink,  but  not  to  equal  advantage:  on  one  kind  of  paper  the 
ink  penetrates  below  the  surface  and  becomes  an  inseparable 

'  Greswell,  W.  P.,  Aimals  of  Parisian  -  Catalogue  of  Books  Printed  in  the  Fif- 
Typography,  p.  19.    There  quoted  at  length,    teenth  Century,  p.  xix. 

168 


Paper  examined  hy  German  experts 

portion  of  the  fabric ;  on  another  kind  the  ink  is  but  a  gray 
stain  on  a  surface  for  which  it  has  no  affinity.  Fair  print- 
ing can  never  be  produced  when  paper  and  ink  are  not 
mutually  adapted  one  to  the  other. 

Haste  is  another  factor  in  the  production  of  mean  paper. 
For  the  cheaper  papers  the  old  method  of  sun-bleaching  paper 
stock  has  been  put  aside  unavoidably  for  quicker  processes. 
Chlorine  gas,  caustic  alkalis,  and  steam  boiling  are  preferred 
agents  for  the  softening  of  harsh  fibers.  Manipulations  that 
once  called  for  months  of  attention  are  now  confined  within  a 
few  days.  For  the  use  intended,  the  paper  stock  so  treated 
produces  an  acceptable  fabric,  but  as  a  rule  it  is  not  to  be 
compared  with  paper  that  has  been  more  slowly  made.  It 
is  a  mistake,  however,  to  assume  that  honest  paper  with 
sufficient  strength  and  of  high  merit  cannot  be  made  by 
machines.  There  are  machine-made  papers  fully  equal  and 
sometimes  superior  to  the  modern  hand-made  in  every  desir- 
able feature.  The  prejudice  against  all  papers  not  of  linen 
is  equally  unwarrantable.  Esparto  grass  and  selected  wood 
fiber  can  be  acceptably  and  admirably  treated  by  a  skilled 
manufacturer  who  does  not  grudge  time  and  expense. 

Papers  of  high  grade,  whether  made  by  hand  or  machine, 
are  never  common  or  cheap,  but  they  still  continue  to  be 
made  by  men  who  have  pride  in  their  product.  Paper  was 
never  better  made,  never  worse  made,  than  it  is  now. 

A  commission  recently  appointed  by  the  German  govern- 
ment, constituted  of  experts  with  scientific  training,  has 
examined  modern  papers  to  test  their  strength  and  dura- 
bility. The  results  were  disappointing  to  some  collectors 
of  books.  It  was  demonstrated  after  an  examination  of 
specimens  of  paper  from  many  countries  that  hand-made 
papers  were  not  always  the  strongest  or  the  best.  An 

169 


Early  cheapness  of  paper 

abstract  of  this  report  is  to  be  found  in  the  Journal  of  the 
Royal  Society  of  Arts,  London. 

In  the  planning  of  a  new  book  there  is  a  need,  greater 
now  than  ever  before,  for  an  intelligent  adaptation  of  properly 
selected  paper  and  ink  to  the  types,  woodcuts,  or  photo- 
engraved  plates  which  have  been  provided  for  the  book. 
The  selling  price  of  the  paper  fixes  its  value,  but  it  does 
not  determine  its  appropriateness  for  every  purpose.  Print- 
ing ink  will  stick  to  any  kind  of  book  paper,  but  some  papers 
will  take  it  kindly  and  pleasingly,  where  others  will  show  it 
harshly  and  disappointingly.  Practical  tests  by  presswork 
are  needed  to  prove  adaptability,  which  cannot  be  determined 
in  any  other  way. 

The  cheapness  of  paper  in  the  latter  part  of  the  fifteenth 
century  has  been  noticed  by  many  writers  of  that  time.^ 


'  Books,  written  and  printed,  -were  sold 
at  low  prices  as  early  as  1470.  The  Bishop 
of  Aleria,  in  the  preface  to  Sweinheim  and 
Pannartz's  edition  of  Hieronymi  Epistolse, 
makes  these  comments  on  the  change  in  a 
letter  addressed  to  the  Pope  : 

"  In  your  days,  amongst  other  divine 
blessings  which  the  Christian  world  enjoys, 
it  may  congratulate  itself  on  the  facility 
with  which  books  may  be  purchased,  even 
by  the  poorest  student.  It  reflects  no  small 
glory  on  the  reign  of  your  holiness,  that  a 
tolerably  correct  copy  of  a  work  that  for- 
merly cost  more  than  a  hundred  crowns  may 
now  be  purchased  for  twenty;  those  which 
were  heretofore  worth  twenty,  for  four  at 
most.  It  is  a  great  thing,  holy  father,  to 
say  that  in  your  times  the  most  estimable 
authors  are  attainable  at  a  price  little  ex- 
ceeding that  of  blank  parchment  or  paper. 
Some  monarchs  have  gloried,  not  without 
reason,  that  under  their  administration  the 
price  of  corn  hath  scarcely  exceeded  that  of 
the  empty  sack;  of  wine,  that  of  the  cask. 
With  equal  exultation  I  record  it  for  the 


praise  of  posterity,  that  persons  exquisitely 
skilled  in  the  typographic  art  first  began  to 
exercise  their  calling  at  Rome  under  the 
auspices  of  Paul  1 1,  the  Venetian ;  that  by 
means  of  that  supereniinent  pastor  of  the 
church,  Heaven  gives  us,  in  these  days,  to 
purchase  books  for  less  than  would  for- 
merly defray  the  expense  of  the  binding." 

At  the  end  of  his  Ars  Versificatoria,  printed 
by  Peter  'Keysere  and  John  Stol  of  Paris 
(1473-77),  Robert  Gaguin  addresses  the 
reader  in  the  four  distichs  here  rendered 
from  J.  P.  A.  Madden  :  "  Each  time,  honored 
reader,  that  you  may  reread  this  book,  you 
will  the  more  appreciate  the  talent  of  our 
printers.  Instead  of  one  year  or  more  that 
a  swift  copyist  then  reipiired,  one  month  is 
now  enough  for  the  new  art  to  produce  a 
new  book  without  fault.  Not  long  ago  the 
paper  needed  for  the  writing  of  a  book  cost 
more  than  one  pays  at  this  day  for  an 
enormous  volume.  Happy  Germany !  It 
is  to  thee  that  the  world  is  indebted  for  this 
invention." 


170 


COMPOSITION 


In  the  old  books  most  prized  by  collectors  and  librarians, 
large  types  with  suitably  broad  margins  were  always  ad- 
judged most  appropriate  to  the  dignity  of  the  subject-matter. 
They  were  made  to  be  imposing  at  first  glance.  This  led  to 
mistakes;  the  surface  that  would  be  covered  by  large  types 
was  not  always  correctly  estimated,  and  very  thick  books  in 
one  volume  or  in  two  stout  volumes  were  not  infrequent.  To 
keep  reading  matter  within  a  proper  limit,  printers  followed 
the  practice  of  the  earlier  copyists :  they  avoided  paragraphs, 
put  thin  spaces  between  words,  and  made  fi'ee  use  of  abbre- 
viations. Readers  who  had  been  accustomed  to  the  com- 
pact writing  of  manuscript  books  did  not  find  annoying  this 
thin  spacing  of  printed  words.  Taste  has  now  changed ;  the 
solid  type-setting  of  old  printers  is  not  approved  by  modern 
publishers  of  books  purposed  to  be  readable  and  salable. 

The  solidity  of  early  composition  was  partly  remedied  by 
the  long  ascending  and  descending  letters  then  made  by  the 
early  printers  for  large  Roman  lower-case,  which  unavoid- 
ably produced  lanes  of  white  space  between  the  printed  lines 
and  gave  to  a  weary  eye  a  proper  relief  to  the  compactness. 
The  need  of  a  relieving  white  space  between  lines  was  most 
noticeable  when  two  or  more  lines  of  type  were  set  in  capital 
letters  that  nearly  filled  the  body  of  the  type.  The  first 
paragraph  of  the  Eusebius  of  Ratdolt  (plate  21)  fairly  illus- 
trates the  obscurity  produced  by  this  able  printer  in  his 
huddled  composition  of  capital  letters. 

Leads  or  blanks  of  white  space  between  lines  too  close  for 
proper  perspicuity  were  not  unknown  to  the  early  printers. 

171 


Huddling  of  lines  and  of  words 

They  were  fi'eely  used  in  Schoeffer's  edition  (1466)  of  the 
De  Officiis  of  Cicero  and  in  an  occasional  colophon  of  Jenson, 
but  respect  for  the  old  methods  of  arranging  words  and  lines 
was  a  stronger  force.  The  value  of  leads  to  open  a  huddled 
composition  and  make  it  more  readable  was  not  so  clearly 
discerned  and  was  generally  neglected. 

The  proper  width  of  the  white  space  between  printed  words 
is  even  now  controlled  by  the  rule  that  compels  the  division 
of  words  on  syllables  only.  To  comply  with  this  rule,  spac- 
ing may  be  irregular,  wide  in  some  lines,  narrow  in  others. 
The  average  thinness  or  wideness  of  the  text-type  in  use  to 
some  extent  determines  the  width  of  white  space  between 
printed  words.  Words  should  be  kept  apart  visibly :  in  con- 
densed Black-letter  the  space  may  be  very  thin;  in  round 
and  relatively  broad  Roman  lower-case  letter  it  should  be 
wider.  If  Roman  capitals  only  are  used  in  two  or  more  con- 
secutive lines,  the  space  between  words  should  be  twice  as 
wide  as  the  space  selected  for  the  lower-case,  and  the  lines, 
to  be  made  more  readable,  should  be  widely  leaded. 

Spaces  of  different  widths  were  unknown  or  little  used. 
All  the  earliest  printed  books  show  ragged  endings  on  the 
right  side  of  the  page  or  column,  as  is  now  unavoidable  in 
type- writing.  The  spacing  out  of  a*  short  line  of  words  so 
that  it  should  be  full  and  in  symmetrical  lining  with  lines 
above  and  below  was  a  later  improvement. 

The  general  avoidance  of  paragraphs  was  a  serious  fault. 
Many  early  printers  made  but  one  paragraph  of  each  chapter, 
regardless  of  its  length  or  of  frequent  changes.  Even  in  the 
notes  in  Gering's  edition  of  the  Postils  of  de  Lyra  (plate  36) 
and  the  side-notes  of  the  Silius  Italicus  of  de  Tortis  (plate  25) 
paragraphing  is  entirely  suppressed,  and  the  composition  is 
huddled  in  a  manner  that  must  have  been  troublesome  to  the 

172 


General  avoidance  of  white  space  in  pages 

student.  In  the  Postils  the  superior  reference  letters  of  text 
as  repeated  in  their  notes  are  kept  apart  by  a  white  space, 
apparently  so  made  by  the  compositor  in  the  belief  that  the 
reader  would  add  a  red  ring  or  a  dab  of  red  ink  to  indicate  the 
beginning  of  a  new  subject.  It  must  have  been  expected  by  the 
printer  that  the  student  would  voluntarily  accept  the  annoyance 
of  a  slow  search  for  the  proper  place  of  the  desired  reference. 

Poetry  was  the  form  of  text  matter  that  was  fairly  allowed 
a  proper  relief  of  white  space,  as  may  be  noted  in  the  Silius 
Italicus  (plate  25)  and  in  the  preface  to  the  edition  of  Virgil 
printed  by  Bartholomew  of  Cremona  (plate  19). 

When  the  printer  was  provided  with  one  size  only  of  large 
type,  and  much  reading  matter  had  to  be  kept  within  a  pre- 
determined number  of  pages,  a  certain  compactness  of  com- 
position was  unavoidable,  which  the  early  printers  did  not 
regard  as  a  fault.  ^ 

Foreseeing  the  gloominess  of  his  composition,  de  Zanis 
tried  to  make  his  Plutarch  attractive  by  a  graceful  border, 
by  initial  letters  quainter  in  design  than  those  of  the  hack 
illuminators,  and  by  the  remarkable  engraving  of  Theseus 
and  the  Minotaur ;  but  these  graces  were  not  enough  to  make 
the  text  pleasingly  readable.    There  is  a  running  title  in 


^The  Livy  of  John  and  AVendelin  of 
Speyer,  in  two  volumes  (plate  14),  lias  one 
chapter  of  twenty-eight  pages,  forty-eight 
lines  to  the  page  (5|  x  10^  inches),  set  up  as 
one  paragraph,  without  a  white  line  or  even 
the  break  of  a  half  white  line  to  indicate  a 
change  in  subject-matter.  The  Quintilian  of 
Jenson  (plate  16)  has  one  chapter  of  twenty- 
five  solid  pages,  without  any  break  or  sign; 
and  other  chapters  almost  as  long  are  fre- 
quent. This  method  of  huddling  together 
lines  of  closely  spaced  words  was  maintained 
for  some  years.  The  admirable  Latin  Bible 
in  Gothic  type  of  Renner  (1476)  shows  the 
divisions  with  Roman  numerals  of  chapters  at 
each  proper  cross-line,  but  it  has  no  breaks 


for  verses,  not  even  for  the  irregular  books  of 
Job  and  Psalms.  The  room  required  for  any 
relief  of  white  space  was  apparently  grudged. 
The  Bible  of  Robert  Stephens  of  Paris  (1545) 
does  make  paragraphs  for  the  verses  of  Job 
and  Psalms;  but  other  parts  of  the  book  are 
huddled  together  in  the  old  fashion  without 
breaks.  The  text  of  this  edition,  in  a  6-point 
type  of  thin  face  and  printed  with  weak  ink 
and  feeble  impression,  is  made  more  obscure 
by  marginal  side-notes  in  a  narrow  measure. 

The  edition  of  Plutarch's  Lives  printed 
by  de  Zanis  in  1496  (plate  26)  fairly  exhibits 
the  repulsiveness  produced  by  compacting  a 
book  intended  for  two  parts  in  one  folio 
volume  of  578  closely  printed  pages.  The 


173 


Compactness  of  much  early  printing 

capital  letters  over  each  page,  that  properly  indicates  the 
subject-matter  below,  and  its  leaves  (but  not  its  pages)  are 
consecutively  numbered  with  Arabic  figures.  The  recto  of 
the  first  leaf  has  a  small  bastard  title,  Plutarchi  Vitae,  in 
capital  letters  of  the  text-type,  and  the  verso  of  this  leaf  has 
a  table  of  the  chapter  headings. 

The  earlier  books  do  not  have  the  complete  title-page  now 
required  — not  even  a  short  and  small  bastard  title  upon  a 
separate  leaf.  A  few  explanatory  lines  may  go  before  the 
first  page  of  text,  but  it  is  oftener  a  dedication.  As  a  rule 
the  printer  began  the  text  of  type  abruptly,  at  the  top  of  the 
page,  leaving  but  a  small  square  of  white  space  for  the  in- 
sertion of  a  written  or  painted  initial  letter.  When  the  text 
had  been  printed  a  few  introductory  words  were  written,  but 
not  always  with  neatness,  at  the  head  of  this  first  page.  It 
was  supposed  by  the  printer  that  the  buyer  of  the  book  would 
write  or  paint  in  the  needed  initial.  This  was  not  always 
done;  and  even  when  it  had  been  done  this  initial  so  made 
might  prove  a  real  blemish  to  the  type  work,  for  there  al- 
ways have  been  clumsy  letterers  to  degrade  print  with  care- 
less drawing.  In  all  books  of  devotion  with  versicles  and 
responses,  it  was  expected  that  the  owner  of  the  book  would 

facsimile  of  its  first  page,  shown  on  page  97,  tlie  extreme  of  closeness,  so  as  to  get  much 

with  a  broad  black  border  and  a  large  wood-  matter  on  the  page.    The  breaking  of  a  line 

cut,  imperfectly  shows  the  compactness  of  its  to  form  the  small  square  of  white  space  that 

following  page  of  solid  composition(6y  inches  marks  the  beginning  of  a  new  paragraph  was 

wide  and  9f  inches  high).    Each  full  page  purposely  neglected.    One  of  the  chapters 

consists  of  sixty-two  lines  of  a  bold-faced  has  nineteen  solid  pages  of  full  lines,  or 

IH-point  type,  but  in  all  lines  the  words,  more  than  seventeen  thousand  words.  To 

frequently  abbreviated,  are  separated  with  read  types  or  study  writings  so  composed 

very  thin  spaces.    Even  the  chapters  are  must  have  been  wearisome;  to  refer  to  an 

huddled  together.    Each  of  its  sixty-seven  imperfectly  remembered  word  or  phrase  in 

divisions  begins  with  one  or  two  lines  of  the  solid  composition  must  have  been  difficult 

capitals  of  the  text  and  an  engraved  initial  almost  to  impossibility, 

letter  of  neat  design ;  but  there  is  rarely  a  thin  Other  examples  of  the  compactness  of 

wliite  line  tosliow  separation  between  con  tig-  early  printing  are  de  Tortis's  edition  of  Silius 

uous  chapters.    The  compositors  must  have  Italicus  (plate  25)  and  the  Livy  printed  by 

been  told  to  crowd  letters,  words,  and  lines  to  Daniel  Elzevir  (plate  39). 

174 


Paging,  signatures,  and  catchwords 

mark  change  of  subject-matter  with  dabs  of  red  ink  over  the 
initial  letters  of  a  sentence,  and  this  method  of  indicating 
a  new  paragraph  was  gradually  adopted  in  secular  books. 

This  treatment  of  title-page  matter  was  convenient  to  the 
early  buyer  of  books,  but  it  seemed  petty  when  set  in  types 
too  small  for  the  subject-matter.  Other  printers  began  to 
consider  the  value  of  larger  types  for  the  name  of  the  book, 
and  the  assembling  of  useful  information  about  the  edition 
upon  one  front  page  where  it  could  be  read  without  further 
search.  The  facsimile  of  the  title-page  of  the  Bible  by 
0.  Froschover  (plate  38)  is  a  fair  illustration  of  a  style 
then  approved  by  printers  of  the  early  sixteenth  century.  It 
shows  two  sizes  of  very  large  type  —  too  large  for  the  text 
of  any  ordinary  book  and  apparently  made  only  for  service 
on  title-pages. 

Paging  was  another  improvement  tardy  in  development. 
The  numbering  of  leaves  with  Arabic  figures  gradually  sup- 
planted the  clumsy  and  uncertain  Roman  numerals,  but  it 
was  a  paging  only  on  the  recto  or  the  right  side  of  the  folded 
leaf;  the  verso,  or  left-side  page,  was  not  numbered.  The 
value  of  this  neglected  aid  to  ready  reference  in  a  search  for 
an  indistinctly  remembered  passage  in  the  text  needs  little 
comment.  It  was  convenient  then  and  now  to  insert  the 
paging  figure  by  the  side  of  the  running  title  at  the  head  of 
the  page,  but  the  page  figure  is  clearer  at  the  foot. 

Catchwords  and  signatures  were  not  used  by  the  earlier 
Italian  printers,  although  manuscript  copyists  had  found 
them  of  service,  for  they  were  safeguards  against  the  acci- 
dental displacement  of  detached  sheets  before  they  had  been 
prepared  for  sewing  in  consecutive  order. 

Some  recent  reformers  of  typography  have  tried  to  avoid 
the  use  of  signatures  and  Arabic  figm*es  for  paging,  but 

175 


Running  titles  and  chapter  headings 

William  Blades  has  proved  that  all  these  safeguards  were 
used  by  copyists  before  they  assembled  and  sewed  the  differ- 
ent folded  sections  of  a  book.  As  first  planned,  signatures 
were  placed  on  the  margin  of  the  first  page  of  each  folded 
section  close  to  the  lower  edge  of  the  leaf.  When  the  sec- 
tions had  been  properly  sewed  and  the  possibility  of  a  mis- 
placing had  been  prevented,  these  signature  marks  were 
trimmed  off  by  the  binder.  The  signature  mark,  whether  of 
letters  or  figures,  is  often  regarded  by  the  casual  reader  as  an 
obtrusive  and  offensive  addition  to  the  print  on  the  page; 
it  is  an  offense,  but  it  is  a  serviceable  mechanical  device 
that  may  not  safely  be  neglected.  To  assemble  and  keep  in 
consecutive  order  the  different  sections  of  books  of  same  size 
of  page  and  leaf  and  in  two  or  more  volumes  without  the  aid 
of  signatures  is  always  a  risk.  The  chances  of  error  are 
many  in  any  bookbindery  that  has  to  keep  exposed  in  folded 
sections  thousands  of  detached  sheets  for  different  books. 

Running  titles  at  the  head  of  pages  are  of  value  to  every 
reader.  When  it  indicates  the  subject-matter  of  the  print 
below,  the  running  title  prevents  a  needless  scrutiny.  It 
appears  in  a  few  books  printed  at  the  close  of  the  fifteenth 
century,  but  its  improvement  to  the  appearance  of  the  page, 
even  when  it  uselessly  repeats  the  title  of  the  book,  has  led 
to  its  general  adoption.  A  page  without  a  running  title  is  not  a 
novelty  now,  but  the  page  without  it  seems  bald  and  imperfect. 

Numbered  chapters  or  chapter  headings  in  some  form  have 
been  approved  guide-posts  for  a  reader  ever  since  books  were 
written.  For  this  purpose  the  Roman  numeral  still  keeps 
its  prominent  position,  but  largely  because  its  letters  are 
broader  and  plainer  than  the  thinner  characters  of  Arabic 
figures.  Numerals  of  Roman  letters  mate  neatly  with  the 
capital  letters  that  precede  them  in  the  line.    The  modern 

17G 


Initials  and  summaries  of  chapters 

practice  of  beginning  a  chapter  with  a  fresh  leaf,  with  a 
broad  margin  at  its  head,  and  of  ending  that  chapter  with  a 
blank  that  shows  its  finish  at  the  end  of  its  last  page,  was 
unknown  in  the  fifteenth  century.  For  many  years  it  was 
customary  to  have  one  chapter  follow  its  predecessor  with- 
out any  intervening  lane  of  white  space,  as  must  still  be 
noticed  in  all  compact  modern  editions  of  the  Bible.  This 
huddling  of  print,  without  a  rest  for  the  eye  in  the  form  of 
blank  space,  made  study  fatiguing  and  the  print  repelling. 
Early  writers  of  fine  manuscript  books  were  more  considerate, 
and  provided  blank  space  for  added  decoration  in  the  shape 
of  borders,  center  bands,  initial  letters,  or  illustrative  minia- 
tures. Initial  letters  were  most  frequently  employed,  for  they 
permitted  an  infinite  variety  of  ornamentation.  It  was  not 
possible  for  any  typographic  printer  to  imitate  the  gold  and 
bright  color  and  beautiful  designs  of  the  calligraphers,  yet 
Ratdolt  and  others  did  engrave  initial  letters  of  merit  span- 
ning and  filling  in  height  two  or  more  lines  of  text-type. 
Initial  letters  of  large  size,  whether  plain  or  engraved,  were 
a  pleasant  relief  to  eyes  wearied  with  the  monotony  of  com- 
pacted composition,  and  were  as  effective  in  arresting  the 
attention  of  a  hasty  reader  as  numbered  chapter  headings. 
This  time-honored  device  for  adding  to  the  attractiveness  of 
a  page  has  been  for  many  years  undervalued,  but  largely  so 
because  the  letters  now  furnished  for  this  purpose  are  seldom 
good  mates  for  the  text  and  are  hackneyed  by  repetition. 
They  are  often  inferior  in  design  to  the  approved  initials  of 
the  fifteenth  century. 

Summaries  of  chapters,  sometimes  in  the  form  of  a  single 
line,  but  oftener  in  a  recapitulation  of  every  paragraph  in 
the  chapter,  are  modern  additions  to  the  printed  book  which 
have  been  claimed  as  improvements,  but  this  is  questionable. 

177 


Notes  on  the  margins  of  the  page 

A  short  summary  may  be  of  service,  but  the  long  summary 
that  occupies  a  large  portion  of  the  page  is  not  an  improve- 
ment on  early  practice,  for  it  is  seldom  properly  examined. 

The  inclosure  of  a  page  of  text  on  three  or  four  sides  with 
explanatory  notes  in  a  smaller  size  of  type,  as  is  here  shown 
in  the  facsimiles  from  Torresano,  Gering,  and  de  Tortis,  is  a 
peculiarity  of  early  composition  that  has  fallen  into  general 
disuse.  In  our  modern  practice  of  composition,  long  notes 
are  always  put  at  the  foot  of  the  page  or  in  an  appendix; 
short  notes  that  specify  authorities,  dates,  or  cross-references, 
and  that  need  short  lines  only,  are  sometimes  added  to  the 
outer  margin  of  the  page;  but  verbose  notes  on  the  inner 
margin  or  at  the  head  of  the  page  are  ruled  out  by  authors 
and  printers  as  impracticable.  The  method  of  keeping  long 
notes  on  the  same  page  of  text  had  been  practised  for  cen- 
turies by  the  copyists  of  manuscripts,  but  it  called  for  much 
discretion  and  inteUigence.  What  was  troublesome  in  copy- 
ing was  much  more  difficult  in  the  composition  of  type.  To 
keep  notes  and  text  together  on  one  page  or  on  facing  pages, 
it  was  necessary  that  the  width  of  the  measure  for  the 
broader  lines  of  the  text  and  for  the  narrower  lines  of  notes 
should  be  altered  and  readjusted  at  every  succeeding  page. 
Type-setting  could  not  safely  begin  before  the  words  of  each 
proposed  page  had  been  counted  and  the  space  to  be  occupied 
on  each  page  had  been  correctly  estimated  and  these  pro- 
portioned one  to  the  other.  This  drudgery,  which  could  be 
satisfactorily  performed  by  the  author  only,  largely  increased 
the  cost  of  composition,  and  this  added  cost  soon  led  to  the 
discontinuance  of  the  page  surrounded  by  notes.  The  liberty 
to  abbreviate  long  words,  granted  to  the  early  compositor, 
but  properly  denied  to  the  modern  workman,  has  made  this 
old  method  impossible. 

178 


Abbreviations  and  ligatures 

Copyists  of  the  early  fifteenth  century  found  the  standard 
Roman  alphabet  insufficient  for  the  expression  of  thought  as 
then  written.  Capital  letters  were  only  twenty- three  in 
number;  Y  served  for  U,  I  for  J,  and  W  was  not  needed 
in  a  Latin  book.  The  lower-case  characters  had  been  en- 
larged to  twenty-six  by  the  addition  of  the  long  f  and  the 
diphthongs  se  and  oe.  The  desire  to  put  many  words  in 
small  space,  to  shorten  the  drudgery  of  writing,  or  to  save 
paper  and  keep  a  proposed  book  within  a  predetermined  limit, 
were  motives  that  induced  the  copyists  to  take  great  liberties 
in  contractions  and  abbreviations.  For  some  liberties  they 
found  warrant  in  the  lapidary  inscriptions  of  old  Rome  that 
were  still  in  evidence,  but  clipped  words  were  not  enough. 
They  added  signs,  accents,  conjoined  letters,  and  ligatures  of 
long  syllables  in  profusion.  This  laxity  in  practice  worked 
mischief.  Abbreviations  devised  for  his  own  convenience 
by  one  copyist  might  be  unknown  to  another  copyist,  and 
be  deciphered  with  difficulty  by  a  student.  A  French  scholar 
of  this  period  said  that  manuscript  books  were  becoming  un- 
intelligible through  the  carelessness  and  presumption  of  the 
copyists.  Two  critical  readers  might  give  entirely  different 
meanings  to  the  same  sentence  written  by  two  copyists.^ 

It  was  not  practicable  for  the  early  printer  to  reproduce 
in  type  many  of  these  ligatures  or  conjoined  letters.  A  new 
character  compelled  the  cutting  of  a  separate  punch,  the 
making  and  justifying  of  a  separate  matrix  and  its  casting 
as  a  distinct  type  at  much  delay  and  needless  extra  expense. 
Printers  of  the  better  class,  now  famous  through  their  quartos 

'The    annoyance    produced  was   great  early  manuscripts  consults  the  Dizionario  di 

enough  to  lead  Martin  Flach  of  Strasburg  in  Abbreviature  Latine  ed  Italiane  (Milan, 

1499  to  prepare  and  print  a  book  of  ex-  1899),  which  contains  more  than  thirteen 

planations  for  the  common  abbreviations.  thousand  abbreviated  expressions   in  use 

His  book,  helpful  in  its  time,  is  almost  for-  during  the  fifteenth  century,  but  only  for 

gotten   now.    The  modern  decipherer  of  Roman  characters. 

179 


Abbreviations  not  favored  by  type-founders 

and  folios,  shunned  this  expense  and  tried  not  to  expand  but 
to  simplify  the  characters  then  written  in  manuscripts.  To 
the  twenty-three  capital  and  twenty-six  lower-case  letters 
type- makers  added  only  the  three  points  of  punctuation  .  :  ? 
The  annoyances  made  in  type-casting  and  type-setting  by 
the  overhanging  beak  of  the  f  and  f  compelled  the  casting 
of  these  combinations  on  one  body:  fF,  fl,  fi,  ffi,  ffl,  ft,  (51). 
Wendelin  of  Speyer  used  an  accented  e  instead  of  the  diph- 
thong 86  and  the  types  of  o  and  e  for  03.  Sweinheim  and 
Pannartz  in  their  edition  of  the  Epistles  of  St.  Jerome  rejected 
the  short  s  and  made  the  long  /  serve  for  a  final  letter. 
Small  capitals,  Arabic  figures,  and  reference  marks  were  not 
then  in  any  scheme  or  assortment  of  regular  book  type.  To 
please  the  tastes  of  readers  who  had  been  long  accustomed 
to  the  accented  letters  and  ligatures  of  the  copyists  the  early 
type-makers  occasionally  provided  some  of  these  characters, 
but  they  did  it  grudgingly. 

Bernard  says  that  the  fame  of  Jenson's  Roman  is  based 
on  the  seventy-three  characters  used  in  his  ordinary  books. 
This  scant  collection  is  in  marked  contrast  with  the  scheme 
for  book  type  now  in  use,  which  consists  of  four  correlated 
series  of  capitals,  small  capitals,  Italic,  and  lower-case,  with 
many  points  of  punctuation,  figures  and  fi'actions,  marks  of 
reference,  braces,  dashes,  leaders,  and  commercial  signs  — 
in  all  about  two  hundred  and  forty-seven  distinct  types. 

Abbreviations,  as  then  practised  by  copyists  and  by  some 
printers,  were  prompted  by  a  desire  to  keep  within  proper 
limits  the  contents  of  a  bulky  book,  and  poor  scholars  may 
not  have  seriously  objected  when  they  cheapened  its  price. 
The  license  then  allowed  in  condensation  may  be  seen  in  the 
notes  in  the  Postils  of  Nicolas  de  Lyra  by  Ulric  Gering,  in 
the  Silius  Italicus  of  Baptista  de  Tortis,  the  Decretals  of 

180 


Book-making  an  attractive  industry 


Gregory  by  Andrew  Torresano,  and,  most  flagrant  of  all, 
the  Four  Books  of  Sentences  by  Wendelin  of  Speyer.  In  the 
book  planned  for  notes  to  surround  the  page  of  text  on  every 
side,  abbreviations  were  unavoidable.  In  a  text  of  large 
size,  words  often  appear  at  length,  but  in  the  notes  the 
clipping  of  a  word  too  long  for  the  line  was  common. 

Uniformity  of  style  in  the  spelling  of  words,  and  espe- 
cially of  proper  names,  does  not  seem  to  have  been  regarded 
as  of  importance.  In  the  Jenson  printing  house  Jenson's 
name  has  been  spelled  in  the  colophons  ien^on  and  ienfon. 
A  proper  name  had  one  capital  only,  and  that  was  at  the 
beginning  of  the  baptismal  name ;  the  first  letter  of  the  family 
name  was  usually  in  lower-case  both  in  Germany  and  Italy. 

The  number  of  editions  printed  in  Venice  before  the  year 
1500  is  estimated  by  Bernard  at  nearly  three  thousand,  with 
three  hundred  copies  as  a  fair  average  for  each  edition.  Some 
of  them  were  in  two  or  more  volumes.  If  a  proper  allowance 
be  made  for  books  now  lost  or  unknown,  the  total  product  will 
largely  exceed  one  million  volumes.^  Books  were  also  printed 
in  other  cities,  towns,  and  monasteries.  Eagerness  to  ac- 
quire a  practical  knowledge  of  some  department  of  printing 
was  shown  by  all  artistic  crafts.  Merchants  were  anxious  to 
hazard  money  in  the  new  business  of  typography,  which  then 

'It  is  not  possible  to  arrive  at  an  exact  ties.    The  authorities  differ,  for  bibliography 

estimate  of  the  number  of  books  printed  in  is  not  one  of  the  exact  sciences.  Pollard 

Europe  with  movable  types  during  the  fif-  has  furnished  a  striking  illustration  of  these 

teenth  century.    Down  to  the  present  time  differences.    Bartolommeo  de  Libri,  a  printer 

between  24,000  and  25,000  of  these  have  of  Florence,  was  credited  by  Hain,  most 

been  described ;   but  books  hitherto   un-  painstaking  of  cataloguers,  with  but  three 

identified  continue  from  time  to  time  to  come  books,  and  this  number  was  accepted  by 

to  light,  and  it  is  by  no  means  improbable  that  Burger,  equally  careful,  in  his  Index  to  Hain 

the  total  number  extant  may  be  about  30,000.  of  1891.    Soon  afterward  bibliographers  ac- 

Fortescue,  Catalogue  of  Books  Printed  in  cepted  the  teaching  that  types  are  a  safe  guide 

the  Fifteenth  Century.  in  determining  the  paternity  of  a  book.  Fol- 

It  was  my  intention  to  .show  the  activity  lowing  this  teaching,  in  his  edition  of  1902 

of  the  printers  here  named  by  a  count  of  Burger  ascribed  one  hundred  and  twenty 

their  books,  as  set  forth  by  accredited  authori-  books  to  de  Libri. 

181 


Ingenuity  of  many  early  compositors 

promised  to  be  exceedingly  profitable.  Hundreds  and  thou- 
sands of  workmen  must  have  been  employed  at  type-making, 
type-setting,  presswork,  and  bookbinding,  and  the  practice 
of  each  craft  was  soon  made  a  distinct  trade.  Type-setting 
demanded  the  largest  number. 

When  we  consider  that  the  introducers  of  printing  in 
Italy  were  for  the  most  part  workmen  who  had  expertness 
in  one  or  two  branches  of  typography  only,  and  that  the 
proper  practice  of  the  art  demanded  an  intelligent  acquain- 
tance with  the  details  of  many  different  trades,  yet  that 
these  details  had  to  be  intrusted  to  relatively  inexperienced 
workmen,  it  is  wonderful  that  the  novices  did  so  much  work 
and  did  it  so  well.  The  Cost  Book  of  the  Ripoli  Press  tells 
us  that  some  of  its  compositors  were  women  from  near-by 
convents  who  did  their  work  well  and  were  commended. 
As  the  books  printed  were  largely  in  the  Latin  language, 
it  was  important  that  the  compositor  should  have  a  decent 
knowledge  of  Latin  to  enable  him  to  read  manuscript  copy 
full  of  abbreviations,  and  in  his  turn  to  abbreviate  words 
with  discretion  when  they  had  to  be  rearranged  for  narrow 
lines  and  side-notes. 

It  was  the  practice  of  all  early  printers  to  set  up  each  page 
by  itself,  and  this  page  was  separately  printed.  Two  pages 
were  put  together  side  by  side  on  the  bed  of  the  press,  but  each 
page  had  to  be  separately  impressed  by  special  pull  of  bar.^ 

Many  of  the  early  type-setters  showed  much  ingenuity 
in  composition.  Some  tried  to  make  the  book  attractive 
by  fantastic  arrangements  of  type.    The  closing  lines  of  a 

'  Presswork  was  tlms  immensely  slow  as  make  the  end  of  each  section  of  copy  coin- 
compared  with  composition,  and  to  meet  this  cide  with  the  end  of  a  quire.  This  accounts 
difficulty  it  was  usual  to  have  four  or  six  for  some  of  the  variations  in  the  number  of 
presses  employed  on  a  large  book  simultane-  sheets  'n\  difierent  quires.  Pollard,  Cata- 
ously.  The  copy  to  supply  each  press  was  logue  of  Books  Printed  in  the  Fifteenth 
set  up  separately,  and  the  problem  was  to  Century  now  in  the  British  Museum,  p.  xii. 

182 


Trimness  of  early  printed  pages 

chapter  were  sometimes  set  in  lines  of  gradually  decreasing 
width,  to  present  the  appearance  of  a  funnel.  Colophons  and 
imprints  were  arranged  in  geometrical  forms  of  simplicity, 
as  in  the  shape  of  wine  cups,  crosses,  diamonds,  circles,  etc. 
To  get  a  statement  within  a  prescribed  space  a  compositor 
was  often  required  to  abbreviate  a  sentence  to  three  fourths 
or  even  one  half  of  its  proper  length  in  spelled-out  words. 
It  was  supposed  that  the  reader  would  have  wit  enough  to 
conjecture  the  meaning  of  words  so  abbreviated.  Regret  is 
sometimes  expressed  that  modern  compositors  do  not  show 
the  skill  of  their  predecessors  in  curious  arrangements  of 
type;  but  it  is  not  so  well  understood  now  that  the  older 
fashion  of  inclosing  a  page  of  text-type  with  notes  that  sur- 
round three  or  four  sides  of  the  text  matter  has  always  been 
troublesome  and  expensive,  and  is  now  seldom  practicable. 
It  can  be  done  with  satisfaction  in  narrow  measures  when 
very  small  type  is  used  and  the  compositor  has  the  liberty 
(now  properly  denied  to  him)  to  abbreviate  words  at  his 
discretion.  In  no  case  can  it  be  done  pleasingly  unless  the 
author  prepares  the  copy  for  this  treatment  by  counting  the 
letters  and  words  intended  to  come  within  the  prescribed 
width  of  line.  The  author  must  be  equally  vigilant  in 
supervising  the  work  and  correcting  the  proof  for  the  adjust- 
ment of  unforeseen  irregularities  that  will  surely  occm*. 

Contracted  forms  of  expression  in  types,  abbreviations, 
and  broken  lines  of  verse  were  partially  prevented  by  the 
more  extended  use  of  the  thin,  slanting  ItaHc,  but  it  was 
gradually  discovered  that  the  Roman  characters  could  be 
condensed  with  equal  legibility. 

In  some  features  of  book-making  the  early  Italian  pub- 
lisher was  more  particular  than  his  modern  successor  in 
trying  to  give  a  neat  and  trim  appearance  to  pages  of  type. 

183 


Attempts  at  trimness  and  symmetry 

Margins  may  be  broad  in  some  books  and  narrow  in  others, 
but  the  adjustment  of  the  page  of  type  to  the  shape  of  leaf 
and  margin  was  usually  satisfactory.  The  early  printer's 
limited  collection  of  t3rpes  compelled  him  to  select  wisely  the 
size  of  the  leaf  of  paper  on  which  the  page  was  to  be  printed, 
and  he  avoided  the  needless  breaking  up  of  lines  of  poetry. 

Modern  sense  of  propriety  is  not  so  nice.  There  are 
recent  editions  of  poetry  deformed  by  a  broad  border  about 
too  narrow  pages,  and  by  the  occasional  addition  within  that 
border  of  a  very  large  engraved  initial  letter.  This  treat- 
ment compels  the  breaking  of  one  or  more  lines  of  verse  in 
two  or  more  short  lines  with  ragged  endings,  the  mangling 
of  the  rhyme  and  the  disfigurement  of  the  page.  A  rashly 
predetermined  combination  of  a  large  size  of  text-type  with 
a  big  initial  and  a  wide  border  which  is  not  adapted  to  the 
shape  of  leaf  and  amount  of  matter  is  always  a  damage  to 
the  general  effect  of  the  page.  It  is  not  possible  for  a  printer, 
working  under  rigid  instructions,  to  reconcile  incongruities 
in  plan  which  should  have  been  foreseen  by  author  or  pub- 
lisher. The  decorator,  unintentionally  but  effectively,  may 
belittle  the  intent  of  the  author  and  annoy  the  reader.  The 
space  that  must  be  occupied  by  types  that  are  absolutely 
incompressible  is  seldom  considered  as  it  should  be. 

A  Spanish  printer  of  the  sixteenth  century  devised  an 
ingenious  method  to  prevent  frequent  overturns  or  breaks  in 
full  lines  of  poetry  which  merits  modern  imitation.  He  had 
made  for  this  purpose  two  series  of  a  similar  face  of  type  on 
the  same  body.  One  was  broad,  one  was  narrow,  but  the 
types  of  both  series  were  of  same  height,  same  thickness 
of  stem,  and  neatly  alined.  He  used  the  narrow  series  only 
for  the  relatively  unimportant  words  that  would  have  made 
the  hue  too  wide  and  caused  a  needless  break. 

184 


Practical  workmen  preferred  as  managers 

Early  editions  are  often  valuable  for  mechanical  merit,  but 
praise  can  be  given  to  few  for  their  accuracy.  Proof-reading 
as  now  practised  was  then  unknown  or  much  neglected.  The 
liberty  given  to  compositors  to  abbreviate  freely,  and  the 
scant  time  allowed  to  an  author  or  editor  for  the  scrutiny  of 
proof,  practically  led  to  serious  errors.  In  one  of  his  writ- 
ings Erasmus  has  put  on  record  his  anger  at  the  perversion 
of  his  words  printed  from  manuscript  copy.  Prosper  Mar- 
chand^  calls  the  corrector  for  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz 
a  presumptuous  meddler  with  texts;  he  quotes  Schelhorn, 
Maittaire,  Nande,  and  other  bibliographers  as  expressing 
similar  judgment. 

The  facsimiles  previously  presented,  which  include  some 
of  the  best  and  worst  of  early  printing,  fairly  indicate  the 
variety  of  early  Italian  styles,  but  more  information  would 
be  of  service.  The  customary  methods  of  organizing  and 
managing  a  new  printing  house,  the  relations  between 
masters,  workmen,  and  rival  publishers,  are  scantily  noticed 
by  early  bibliographers.  It  is  impracticable  to  collect  from 
these  notices  facts  enough  to  give  exact  information  about 
the  methods  then  in  general  use. 

This  gap  is  partially  supplied  by  Paul  Mellottee  of  Paris, 
"doctem-  es-sciences  pohtiques  et  economiques,"  who  pub- 
lished in  1905  the  first  volume  of  his  Histoire  Economique 
de  rimprimerie.  It  contains  some  curious  matter  in  con- 
densed form. 

Our  information  about  the  duties  and  rights  of  partners  in 
new  printing  ventures  is  scant,  but  the  following  notes  of 
an  agreement  made  between  Zarotto  and  his  associates, 
which  have  been  copied  from  Bernard,  throw  additional 
light  on  the  subject.    They  show  that  the  chosen  leader 

^  Histoire  de  I'lmprimerie,  vol.  i,  pp.  97—103  and  notes. 

185 


Agreement  between  Zaroito  and  his  associates 

was  not  a  speculator  or  financier,  but  a  man  who  had  earned 
a  deserved  reputation  as  a  practical  workman — planner  of 
books,  maker  of  types,  and  compounder  of  ink. 


SUMMARY  of  an  agreement  made  by 
and  between  Antonio  Zarotto,  the 
priest  Gabriel  de  li  Orsoni,  Colla  Montano, 
Antonio  de  Parma,  Pedro  Antonio  de  Burgo 
de  Castilliono  and  Gabriel  Pavero  de  Fontana 
for  a  partnership  of  three  years,  dated  20th 
May,  1473. 

1  Zarotto  promises  to  furnish  to  this  asso- 
ciation all  the  types  needed,  Roman,  Greek, 
or  Gothic,  and  to  compound  the  ink  for  all 
the  presses  required. 

2  The  four  associates  first  named  after  Za- 
rotto agree  to  furnish  money  for  the  ex- 
penses of  the  association.  De  Burgo  will  at 
once  advance  100  ducats,  on  condition  that 
it  shall  keep  four  presses  constantly  at 
Avork. 

3  The  associate  who  shall  hinder  the  work 
of  the  house  shall  forfeit  all  his  rights. 

4  The  rental  of  the  house  occupied  for 
printing  shall  be  at  the  expense  of  the 
association. 

5  The  profit  made  shall  be  divided  in  three 
equal  parts :  one  part  to  Zarotto  and  the 
remaining  two  parts  equally  among  the 
other  four  associates. 

6  Zarotto,  from  his  one  third  share  of  the 
profits,  shall  repay  the  four  associates  the 
moneys  advanced  by  them  for  the  making 
of  presses  and  other  equipments,  which 
shall  become  his  property  at  the  termina- 
tion of  the  contract. 

7  The  priest  Gabriel  shall  have  custody  of 
the  books,  and  shall  be  the  cashier  and 
general  financial  agent  of  the  association. 
He  will  account  for  all  property  confided 
to  him,  and  he  shall  be  entitled  to  one 
copy  of  every  book  printed  by  the  asso- 
ciation as  compensation  for  this  duty. 

8  The  selection  of  books  to  be  printed  shall 
be  made  by  the  associates  in  open  meeting. 


9  The  recompense  of  the  corrector  and  the 
copyist  [probably  preparers  of  copy  and 
not  professional  readers  or  compositors] 
shall  be  in  the  books  printed. 
10  Every  workman  before  admission  to  the 
printing  house  shall  make  oath  to  keep 
its  secrets.  Workmen  and  the  associates 
also  are  hereby  forbidden  to  give  assist- 
ance to  other  printers  of  the  city,  but  if 
any  associate  purposes  to  have  a  book 
printed  at  his  expense,  and  cannot  agree 
on  terms  Avith  the  association,  he  may  be 
specially  authorized  by  the  association  to 
have  it  printed  by  another  printing  house 
in  Milan  or  Parma.  [This  indicates  the 
existence  of  rival  printing  houses.] 

Soon  after  the  signing  of  this  contract  the 
associate  de  Burgo  made  an  additional 
agreement  with  his  brother  Nicolas.  They 
agreed  to  install  and  keep  at  work  three  or 
more  presses  on  books  of  medicine  or  civil 
or  canon  law  and  to  pay  more  than  one  half 
of  the  rental  of  the  general  printing  house. 
They  also  promised  to  give  to  the  associates 
one  fourth  of  the  profits  accruing  from  the 
sale  of  their  books  and  at  once  to  pay  25 
ducats  to  them.  They  also  agreed  to  give 
to  each  of  the  four  associates  one  copy  of 
every  book  they  printed,  and  not  to  sell 
their  books  below  prices  fixed  by  the  asso- 
ciates. At  the  end  of  the  three  years  spec- 
ified they  would  withdraw  from  the  associa- 
tion, leaving  with  it  all  money  they  had  ad- 
vanced, and  would  convey  to  Zarotto  all  their 
equipment  at  a  price  fixed  by  experts. 

On  their  part  the  four  associates  agreed 
with  de  Burgo  and  his  brother  not  to  print 
on  their  own  four  presses  any  books  on  law 
or  medicine  without  special  permission,  under 
a  forfeit  of  200  ducats  for  each  infraction. 

Seven  presses  were  kept  under  the  control 
of  the  association. 


it 

186 


THE  HAND  PRESS 


The  press  of  the  fifteenth  century  was  of  simple  construction, 
usually  made  by  the  local  joiner  and  blacksmith  to  the  order 
of  the  printer  who  would  use  it.  Its  platen  or  impressing 
surface  was  a  solid  block  of  beechwood,  large  enough  to 
cover  one  folio  page,  but  it  seldom  exceeded  the  size  9x  14 
inches,  and  was  sometimes  smaller.  The  strong  spindle  of 
iron  that  gave  impressing  force  to  this  platen  was  grooved 
at  its  head  with  threads  of  the  screw  that  communicated 
proper  pressure  to  the  platen.  This  spindle  was  securely 
nested  in  a  vertical  collar  that  allowed  no  side  twist,  and 
was  firmly  attached  to  a  bent  protruding  lever,  known  as 
the  bar,  by  which  the  pressman  operated  the  screw.  An 
iron  plate  protected  the  platen  against  wear  of  the  spindle 
point.  The  spindle  at  its  top  was  supposed  to  be  provided 
with  a  sufficient  resist  upward,  from  the  squared  heavy  timber 
firmly  placed  over  it,  against  any  waste  of  pressure. 

The  supports  of  the  press  at  the  sides  were  also  heavy 
beams  of  wood.  It  was  foreseen  that  the  press  might  leak 
applied  pressure  at  many  joints.  Rigidity  of  construction 
in  the  fitting  together  of  its  many  parts  was  planned,  but  was 
never  entirely  secm^ed.  Largely  constructed  of  parts  that 
were  often  not  truly  adjusted,  the  press  was  consequently 
shackly  and  weak.  It  was  properly  described  by  Moxon  in 
his  Mechanick  Exercises  of  1683  as  "a  makeshift,  slovenly 
contrivance."  It  had  to  be  braced  with  beams  diagonally 
placed  against  the  ceiling,  as  is  shown  in  accompanying 
illustrations  from  old  books,  to  confine  the  pressm*e  intended 

187 


The  old  method  of  printing  hooks 

for  type  only,  but  these  resists  were  insufficient.  Its  platen 
could  not  receive  impression  enough  to  transfer  properly  to 
paper  the  ink  upon  the  surface  of  more  than  one  folio  page 
of  type.  Types  first  made  were  often  of  unequal  height.  To 
make  fairly  readable  in  print  those  that  were  too  low  or 
much  worn,  a  thick  blanket  of  wool  was  put  between  the 
platen  and  the  paper  to  be  printed.  When  the  iron  bar  that 
gave  the  impression  was  pulled  down,  the  spongy  blanket 
was  expected  to  diffuse  equal  pressure  to  all  types  that  were 
under  standard  height. 

To  make  a  strong  book  in  workmanlike  style,  the  sheet 
had  to  be  kept  of  the  full  size  furnished  by  the  paper-maker, 
and  yet  must  go  to  the  binder  fully  printed  on  each  side. 
As  the  platen  could  cover  at  one  impression  but  a  portion 
of  one  side  even  of  a  small  sheet,  provision  had  to  be  made 
for  printing  the  types  on  each  side  by  distinct  impressions. 
The  press  must  have  a  bed  twice  as  wide  as  the  platen  and 
large  enough  to  hold  all  the  pages  for  one  side  of  the  sheet. 
The  bed,  usually  of  stone  or  slate,  was  run  in  and  out  on  a 
carriageway  to  receive  the  impression  of  the  platen. 

Two  pages  of  type  planned  to  be  printed  on  the  same  side 
of  the  sheet  for  a  book  of  folio  size  were  put  together  side 
by  side  on  the  bed  of  the  press.  As  the  press  could  not 
print  the  two  pages  simultaneously,  each  form  received  two 
movements  of  the  bed  to  bring  each  page  under  the  platen,  and 
two  pulls  of  the  bar  to  complete  the  impression.  A  sheet 
of  16x21  inches,  then  rated  as  a  large  size,  required  four 
separate  impressions  to  complete  its  four  folio  printed  pages. 

Three  hundred  small  sheets  a  day  printed  on  each  side 
were  considered  a  proper  performance  for  the  two  men  who 
worked  the  press,  but  this  product  required  twelve  hundred 
distinct  impressions  and  as  many  separate  pulls  of  the  bar. 

188 


Plate  40 


Press  work  and  Composition  as  done  in  1520 

(Device  of  Jodocus  Badius  of  Paris) 


The  points  of  Ute  hand  press 

For  a  day  of  ten  hours  the  printing  of  only  three  hundred 
sheets  of  four  pages  in  folio  would  now  be  considered  a  very 
trifling  performance  when  it  is  compared  with  the  thousands 
of  impressions  on  large  sheets  produced  in  the  same  amount 
of  time  by  the  cylinder  press  which  is  now  generally  em- 
ployed for  book  work. 

Two  men  were  needed  to  work  the  press— one  to  distribute 
the  ink  on  the  balls  and  dab  it  neatly  upon  the  face  of  the 
type ;  one  to  place  the  sheet  in  position  to  receive  impres- 
sion fi'om  this  inked  type,  to  move  the  bed  holding  the  type 
accurately  under  the  platen,  and  to  pull  down  the  bar  that 
would  transfer  the  ink  to  the  sheet/ 

It  was  not  an  easy  task  for  the  pressman  to  place  the  paper 
for  the  first  page  of  a  new  sheet  in  correct  position,  to  keep 
it  an  even  distance  from  the  central  fold  (as  yet  undeter- 
mined), and  harder  yet  to  print  the  backing  page,  or  verso,  so 
that  it  should  register  exactly  with  the  recto  page.  The  sheet 
was  not  square,  for  it  had  the  rough  deckle  edges,  and  might 
have  been  dampened  too  much  or  too  little  to  prepare  it  for 
impression.  To  prevent  irregularity  of  margin  and  of  page 
position  the  printer  attached  to  this  first  page  pins  that  per- 
forated but  did  not  blacken  the  paper.  For  the  second,  third, 
and  fourth  pages  of  this  sheet  pins  in  a  corresponding  position 
were  fastened  to  the  tympan,  and  the  sheet  was  adjusted  on 
these  pins,  so  that  the  print  would  appear  in  proper  place.  ^ 

'Moxon's  Mechanick  Exercises,  8vo,  that  convey  additional  explanation  of  tech- 
London,  1683,  contains  two  full-page  en-  nical  terms  that  are  obsolete, 
gravings  by  copperplate  process  of  the  early  ^"In  the  42-line  Bible  there  are  said  to 
press:  plate  3  shows  its  early  form, and  plate  have  been  as  many  as  ten  of  these  pin-points 
4  the  improvements  made  by  Willem  Jansen  to  each  leaf,  four  at  the  top,  four  at  the  foot, 
Blaew  of  Amsterdam  in  1620.  This  scarce  and  two  on  the  outer  margin.  Eacli  of  these 
and  valuable  treatise  on  printing  was  pub-  pins  left  its  mark  on  the  paper  in  a  little  hole, 
lished  in  two  volumes  in  1896  by  the  but  many  of  these  pinholes  have  been  cut  off, 
Typothetae  of  the  City  of  New  York.  Vol-  and  others  closed  up  by  the  heavy  pressure 
ume  II  contains,  on  pages  399-430,  notes  used  by  modern  binders.    Often,  however, 

190 


Limitatwns  of  the  hand  press 

Modern  printers  continue  to  use,  but  not  so  lavishly,  pin- 
holes as  safeguards  against  irregularities  of  margin  and  faulty- 
register,  not  only  in  the  printing  but  in  the  folding  of  large 
sheets  on  machines.  When  presses  have  strictly  accurate 
movement,  and  sheets  are  square  with  neatly  trimmed  edges, 
it  is  practicable  to  get  exact  register  and  true  margins  by  plac- 
ing the  sheet  truly  against  guides  that  do  not  vary  in  position. 
The  early  printers  soon  found  that  excess  of  pinholes  was  a 
hindrance.  Two  pinholes  perforating  the  central  fold  of  the 
sheet  at  proper  distance  were  enough  to  secure  accuracy.  In 
this  position  the  pinholes  were  obscured  by  the  sewing  of  the 
folded  back  and  were  not  noticeable  to  reader  or  librarian. 

Superior  merit  has  been  claimed  for  books  printed  on  the 
hand  press,  as  if  the  press  gave  to  print  distinctive  charac- 
teristics. This  claim  is  not  warrantable.  The  hand  press 
has  produced  admirable  printing  and  can  continue  to  do  so, 
but  it  has  oftener  produced  workmanship  that  is  decidedly 
inferior.  It  has  merits  of  its  own,  but  it  is  not  the  appa- 
ratus preferred  by  the  modern  experienced  master  printer. 
He  rightfully  says  that  it  is  deficient  in  strength,  speed,  and 
productiveness.  These  are  grave  defects,  yet  it  continues  to 
be  rated  as  available  apparatus  for  taking  a  quick  proof 
or  impression.  Its  merit  began  with  its  slow  movement,  its 
constant  exposure  of  type,  paper,  and  machinery  to  the  un- 
remitting supervision  of  two  operators  who  could  arrest  the 

they  are  distinctly  visible,  and  sometimes  from  four  to  two,  and  the  final  abandonment 

very  unpleasantly  so.  ...  A  combination  of  pinholes  altogether,  form  very  useful  land- 

of  damp  paper  and  a  pull  against  the  pin  in  marks.    Schoelfer  appears  to  have  changed 

taking  it  off  the  press  greatly  enlarged  the  from  four  pinholes  to  two  in  the  second  half 

puncture  and  sometimes  resulted  in  a  tear,  of  1474  and  to  have  given  them  up  at  the 

Hence  the  object  of  a  careful  printer  was  to  beginning  of  1477.    Mentelin  on  the  other 

reduce  his  pinholes  to  as  few  as  possible.  At  hand  made  the  first  change  as  early  as  1466; 

a  very  early  date  the  ten  pinholes  mentioned  the  second  probably  some  time  in  1473." 

above  had  been  reduced  to  four,  and  in  the  Pollard,  Catalogue  of  Books  Printed  in  the 

case  of  several  printers  the  further  reduction  Fifteenth  Century,  4to,  London,  1908,  p.  xiv. 

191 


Hand  presses  now  made  of  iron 

press  at  any  time  to  correct  or  prevent  a  noted  fault  in  print. 
Impression  could  be  varied  in  any  part  of  the  form  of  type, 
and  more  or  less  ink  could  be  put  upon  any  part  of  the  page. 
Every  part  of  the  press  or  form  of  type  could  be  approached 
with  little  inconvenience. 

Many  presses  were  needed  by  the  first  printers,  but  their 
very  simple  construction  made  them  relatively  inexpensive. 
What  was  deficient  in  the  press  and  its  product  had  to  be 
supplied  by  adding  to  the  number  of  presses  and  pressmen, 
and  by  insisting  on  a  greater  show  of  skill  and  resourceful- 
ness from  the  workmen.  He  was  a  petty  printer  who  had 
but  one  or  two  presses.  The  Ripoli  Press  began  its  work 
with  seven  presses.  Koburger  of  Nuremberg  is  said  to  have 
made  use  of  twenty- three.  When  the  pressmen  were  skilled, 
watchful,  and  had  proper  materials,  and  their  hearts  were 
in  their  work,  they  did  well;  but  if  they  were  unskilled, 
hurried,  or  careless,  they  did  their  work  badly.  It  was  then 
as  it  is  now,  the  man  more  than  the  press  is  the  factor  that 
produces  neat  presswork.  As  a  rule  the  early  pressmen  did 
their  work  with  ability. 

The  hand  press  now  bought  and  used  by  amateur  book- 
makers is  much  unlike  its  prototype:  the  frame  is  all  of 
iron,  three  or  four  times  larger,  and  ten  times  as  powerful,  but 
it  is  still  much  inferior  in  strength  and  general  efficiency  to 
the  cylinder  printing  machine  that  in  turn  has  supplanted  it. 

There  is  a  tradition  that  a  press  of  iron  of  large  size  was 
made  in  France  at  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century,  but 
the  first  useful  press  of  iron  was  devised  by  Earl  Stanhope 
about  the  year  1800.  It  had  a  platen  large  enough  to 
cover  all  the  type  on  its  bed,  so  that  one  side  of  the  sheet 
could  be  perfectly  printed  at  one  impression.  It  secured 
immediate  approval  fi'om  printers  everywhere.    Soon  after 

192 


Press  improved  slowly 

came  other  forms  of  hand  press  and  a  useful  machine  platen 
press  (Adams)  of  American  invention.  The  cylinder  printing 
machine  followed,  and  by  this  apparatus  books  are  now 
swiftly  printed  on  sheets  three  and  four  times  larger  than 
those  of  the  early  press. 

The  following  illustration  (plate  41)  of  Death  seizing  a 
compositor  and  two  pressmen,  with  a  bookseller,  is  from  La 
Grant  [sic]  Danse  Macabre  des  Hommes  et  des  Femmes,  4to, 
Lyons,  1499.  The  certainty  of  death  was  a  favorite  sub- 
ject for  moralists  of  the  fifteenth  century,  and  often  appeared 
in  paintings  on  the  walls  of  convents  and  churches,  as  well 
as  in  books  for  the  illiterate.  This  crude  representation  of 
the  interior  of  an  early  printing  house  and  bookseller's  shop 
cannot  be  accepted  as  accurate  in  detail  as  to  the  construc- 
tion of  the  early  hand  press,  but  it  fairly  enough  suggests  its 
rude  joints  and  its  need  of  upright  braces  to  prevent  a  waste 
upward  of  the  purposed  downward  pressure.  It  shows  also 
the  old  inking  ball,  and  the  artist's  dim  recollection  of  the 
case  of  type  and  the  composing-stick  for  type-setting.^ 


'  Improvement  in  construction  came  slowly. 
In  his  prosperous  days  Christopher  Plantin 
(about  1576)  had  the  platens  of  his  seven- 
teen presses  faced  with  sheet  copper  to  cover 
the  cracks  and  dents  that  gradually  developed 
in  the  beechwood.  In  1620Willem  Jansen 
Blaew,  a  mathematical  instrument  maker  of 
Amsterdam,  made  other  reforms  in  construc- 
tion that  were  generally  adopted.  His  most 
important  improvement  was  the  attachment 
of  an  iron  shaft  across  and  below  the  bed, 
with  a  drum  of  wood  in  its  center  on  which 
were  fastened  strips  or  girths  of  leather  that 
enabled  the  pressman  by  the  aid  of  a  crank 
at  the  end  of  a  shaft  to  move  to  and  fro 
with  more  facility  the  type  on  the  bed  under 
the  platen.  In  the  older  form  of  press  the 
pressman  had  to  shove  in  and  pull  out  the 
form  of  type  on  the  bed  to  receive  or  release 
its  impression  from  the  platen  by  gripping  the 
side  of  the  carriage  that  held  the  bed. 


Greater  productiveness  from  the  press  does 
not  seem  to  have  been  seriously  attempted 
until  near  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. The  detailed  description  of  a  new 
press  was  read  before  the  French  Academy 
in  1783,  and  it  was  approved  by  the  govern- 
ment. The  inventor,  M.  Anisson  le  fils, 
Director  of  the  Imperial  Printing  House, 
introduced  a  bed  of  sheet  copper  18  X  22^ 
polices,  and  a  platen  cased  in  copper  19  X  23 
pouces.  (The  pouce  is  1^  American  inches.) 
Copper,  iron,  and  steel  were  freely  used  in 
other  parts.  The  press  so  reconstructed  was 
much  larger  and  stronger,  more  carefully 
adjusted  and  fitted  for  printing  more  pages, 
but  it  was  unavoidably  more  expensive,  and 
for  that  reason  did  not  supplant  the  press  of 
Blaew  beyond  France.  A  full  description 
of  this  new  press  was  published  at  Paris  in 
1785,  in  a  quarto  of  40  pages,  with  four 
large  copperplates  explaining  its  mechanism. 


193 


Old  and  new  methods  of  presswork 

Critics  of  authority  adjudge  the  ordinary  book  printing  of 
our  time  as  mediocre  and  commonplace,  decidedly  inferior 
to  that  of  fair  Italian  books  of  the  fifteenth  century.  To  a 
limited  extent  this  judgment  is  just.  Modern  presswork 
does  lack  the  clearness,  firmness  and  blackness  then  readily 
obtained  in  the  older  book  by  the  use  of  large  type,  damp 
paper,  and  an  elastic  impression  that  often  covered  not  only 
the  face  of  the  types,  but  a  small  part  of  their  shoulders, 
making  the  shoulders  of  the  letter  appear  in  print  really 
thicker  and  blacker  than  was  intended  by  the  punch- cutter. 
The  broader  sm*face  produced  by  the  spongy  impression  of  a 
woolen  blanket  favored  a  generous  display  of  ink.^  A  page 
of  type  on  16-  or  18-point  body  would  retain  more  ink  than 
one  on  10 -point  body;  the  ink  that  would  appear  full  black 
on  the  larger  type  would  seem  gray  or  feeble  on  the  small 
type.  The  scant  surface  of  the  platen  on  the  early  press 
favored  a  closer  scrutiny  by  the  pressman  of  the  print  it 
produced.  An  early  notion  was  that  clearness  and  blackness 
could  be  best  attained  by  a  "dwell  on  the  bar" — that  is,  by 
staying  for  a  few  seconds  the  impression  at  its  maximum,  so 
the  ink  transferred  to  paper  could  be  forced  not  merely  upon 
but  below  the  surface  of  the  pliable  paper. 


' "  The  presswork  in  incunabula  is  much  less 
uniformly  good  than  is  generally  admitted. 
There  is  no  shorter  way  of  becoming  con- 
vinced of  its  deficiencies  than  to  look  through 
a  book  to  find  a  passage  which  will  yield  a 
satisfactoi-y  facsimile,  for  while  it  is  compara- 
tively easy  to  make  a  perfect  reproduction  of 
a  perfect  original,  the  smallest  imperfection 
is  exaggerated  at  every  stage,  and  the  remedy 
of  '  touching  up '  is  not  one  which  can  safely 
be  employed,  except  under  the  most  stringent 
precautions.  The  difficulty  caused  by  bad 
presswork  is  greatly  increased  by  the  relent- 
less activity  of  the  rubricator  in  putting  his 
little  stroke  or  dab  of  color  on  every  majuscule 
as  it  caught  his  eye.  The  little  dabs  of  color 


are  nearly  always  in  red,  occasionally  in  yel- 
low, and  both  red  and  yellow  photograph 
black!  Where  the  rubricator  was  heavy- 
handed,  reproduction  becomes  impossible,  and 
several  books  may  have  to  be  searched  through 
to  find  a  choice  of  pages  where  his  zeal  has 
flagged  and  the  obscuring  color-spots  are 
absent.  A  considerable  choice  of  pages  is 
almost  a  necessity,  for  the  specimens  to  be 
reproduced  will  lose  all  their  utility  unless 
they  contain  all  or  most  of  the  characteristic 
letters  which  distinguish  a  fount  as  used  by 
one  printer  from  similar  founts  in  the  posses- 
sion of  other  firms."  Pollard,  Catalogue  of 
Books  Printed  in  the  Fifteenth  Century, 
p.  xxiii. 


194 


Plate  41 


tefecat/mnotmcnecat  <\nchamiectcatnt      frj!)o6ifw  taiet  impmu  rraffi  retteretm: 
O^giwf icoc  p:emit  (V  mobicoe/cunctw  bominatuv*         Catt|  buci^ue  qj;  piindpiii^  c3miime  ^<Mau 


^fUmc  ^  6i  iu6/Wi  (c^/Wi  lDo$)/56i  ffoe  luweinf kj/^ic  nifi  pm/ni(i  ft^/nifi  Utte  pteeio  Difie* 


f[penc^  l^anfcc  Dng  tomhiot} 
Jmpnmtme  fus  fegieccmcnt 
Pcnej  tofi/pout  condufiot) 
O^ourir  ^ou($  fauCtcettaincmnt 

P:e/fc!S/(tcapfc6      fauit  (mjfcv 
i^ec«fernj>  fouft  nu(Ccment 
%  fotiucageo^  con$noifKouurtet:« 

Puis  (\nt  (a  mztnom  cfpic 

Impzime  auom  toue  Ce6  coure 

5De   famctc  t^cofogie 

iEoKf)  'becret/it  poetem/ 

Pat  ml  art  pfufieuta  fwtg^am  dStre 

Keffnccc»)c(lcfergur 

i^ee  tiOHfoire  bee  gene  font  biuere 


fESue  amnt  \)oue  irce  apace 

Poue  me  rcgarb^  be  fte>)  pace 
if ai/fcj     fiuree  tmiiitenant 
Confer  iDowe  f anft/a  quef  gofar^ 
Opetti^  icy)^^o(?re  pcnfcc 
:£ommmt  iDoue  iccufi^  mart^ont 
£dmmcemcnt  ncfl  pas  fnfcc 

Ci^ftfoaire 
C[<3^<J  f tiuft  tf  mmi^t  moj>  bonfet 
3(c  ctoj)  que  ow  j>/mo2t  me  p2c(fe 
%t  mt  contrainrt  bcmeauanter 
i}c/?c  poe  biire  bef^re/fc 
O^ee  fwree  if  fauft  (jtieiefotffe 
<St  ma  (feutic^ue  befoimoie 
5Dont  it  pere  toute  fpcffe 
Cef  e(l  6to  (|uiiier»pm0^inate» 
6 


Unidentified  Printer  at  Lyons, 
The  Dance  of  Death 


1499 


Imperfections  in  modern  printing 

A  comparison  is  often  made  unwisely  between  an  old  book 
of  tbe  first  class  and  a  modern  book  of  the  second  class, 
produced  under  different  conditions  although  by  similar 
mechanical  methods.  The  modern  cylinder  press  takes  on 
its  bed  from  sixteen  to  thirty-two  pages  of  the  ordinary 
book,  which  it  inks  automatically  and  prints  at  the  rate  of 
seldom  less  than  eight  hundred  impressions  an  hour,  and 
sometimes  at  more  speed.  With  so  many  pages,  and  at 
any  high  rate  of  speed,  it  is  impossible  for  one  modern 
operator  to  give  to  the  work  the  unremitting  scrutiny  that 
was  once  required  of  two  pressmen. 

Unfit  paper  is  a  steady  and  fi-equent  hindrance.  Modern 
paper  is  usually  machine-made,  from  wood  pulp,  nearly  al- 
ways dry,  and  often  harsh,  and  not  so  pliable  or  responsive 
to  impression  as  is  better  paper  properly  dampened.  The 
types  of  the  ordinary  modern  book  of  10-  11-  or  12-point 
body  are  for  the  most  part  of  light  face,  and  no  art  of  the 
pressman  can  make  these  thin  types  transfer  to  paper  the 
blackness  easily  had  fi'om  old  types  of  16-point  body.  More 
detrimental  to  the  desired  effect  of  blackness  is  the  required 
speed  of  about  eight  hundred  impressions  an  hour. 

Equally  unfortunate  is  the  erroneous  belief  of  many 
authors  and  publishers  that  distinctiveness  in  print  can  be 
secured  by  the  use  of  a  new  face  of  type  which  has  marked 
peculiarities.  Perfect  printing  is  not  due  entirely  to  perfect 
types,  but  the  arts  of  type-making  have  not  degenerated, 
and  modern  book  types  are  as  a  rule  properly  made.  Tools 
of  precision,  unknown  to  early  founders,  arc  in  daily  use  in 
all  modern  type-foundries.  Roman  types  are  now  scien- 
tifically planned  and  accurately  graded  by  a  system  of  points 
that  conduces  to  precision.  Engraving,  fitting,  and  casting 
were  never  more  exact.    If  some  of  our  recent  styles  are 

196 


Its  increasing  feebleness  of  print 

not  pleasing  to  the  critic,  their  peculiar  features  may  be 
traced  to  the  desire  of  the  designer  to  obtrude  his  personal 
conceits,  or  to  his  endeavor  to  please  the  vitiated  taste  which 
demands  a  letter  different  from  any  in  use,  in  the  hope  that 
its  novelty  will  captivate  a  listless  reader.  Many  of  these 
novelties  are  failures.  The  types  now  most  approved  are 
those  that  are  simplest,  plainest,  and  most  readable. 

In  the  infancy  of  printing  typography  was  planned  as 
a  strictly  masculine  art.  Its  types  were  occasionally  rugged ; 
but  their  sturdiness  was  pardoned  for  their  great  clearness. 
Typography  did  not  become  seriously  dainty  and  feminine 
before  the  last  century.  At  that  period  imitations  were  at- 
tempted of  the  more  delicate  features  of  copperplate  and 
lithography.  "Razor-edged  hair-lines,"  as  Hansard  called 
them  in  1825,  extended  serifs,  and  a  skeleton  structure  for 
Roman  lower-case  letters  were  greedily  accepted  as  features 
of  good  form  by  the  printers  of  that  period,  and  this  pref- 
erence has  not  yet  gone  entirely  out  of  fashion.  One  reason 
for  this  enduring  preference  has  been  the  greater  facility 
with  which  light-faced  types  are  impressed  and  printed. 
Thin  types  give  less  resistance  under  impression,  and  they 
do  not  require  so  much  watchfulness  from  the  pressman  in 
his  regulation  of  an  even  flow  of  ink.  Printing  in  paler 
color  than  is  proper  too  often  passes  muster  and  is  accepted 
by  publishers  and  readers.  To  aid  the  quick  presswork  of 
types  of  light  face,  the  elastic  blanket  of  wool  and  its  suc- 
cessor, the  thick  blanket  of  India  rubber,  are  rarely  em- 
ployed in  the  modern  book  printing  house,  and  only  on  worn 
types  or  plates.  It  is  now  required  that  fine  impressions 
shall  be  against  a  hard,  inelastic  cardboard,  and  that  they 
shall  show  but  little  or  no  mark  of  indention  on  the  sur- 
face.   This  can  be  attained  only  after  a  tedious  preparatory 

197 


Typography  most  useful  with  movable  letters 

leveling  of  impression  by  overlays  or  underlays,  so  that  the 
effect  intended  may  be  that  of  the  delicate  copperplate. 

Weak  presswork  has  been  made  common  by  the  general 
use  of  coated  paper  for  half-tone  photo- engravings.  The 
coated  paper  is  a  thin  web  largely  of  wood  pulp,  covered 
on  each  side  with  a  whitewash  that  gives  to  it  the  smooth- 
ness and  polish  of  satin,  and  it  is  now  accepted  as  the  only 
proper  paper  for  the  finer  half-tone  illustrations. 

Valuable  as  is  the  new  art  of  photo- engraving  for  its 
accurate  reproduction  of  pages  of  old  books  and  prints,  it  is 
not  altogether  satisfying  to  bookish  men.  It  is  compre- 
hensive in  application — equally  serviceable  in  the  reproduc- 
tion of  the  sketches  or  color  washes  of  artists,  and  now  largely 
employed  in  that  field  by  newspapers  and  magazines,  to  the 
practical  destruction  of  the  older  art  of  engraving  on  wood, 
for  which  there  appears  no  indication  of  a  possible  revival. 
The  collector  of  old  books  who  admires  the  boldness,  clear- 
ness, simplicity,  and  distinctness  of  early  printing  is  not 
content  with  the  combination  of  delicate  and  hazy  photo- 
engraving with  clear-cut  founded  type,  nor  with  the  alliance 
in  the  same  book  of  plain  and  polished  paper.  Typography 
is  strong  enough  to  stand  on  its  own  feet ;  it  has  proved  and 
will  continue  to  prove  of  most  service  in  its  earlier  function 
of  expressing  thought  with  movable  letters. 

Pale  print  from  weak  impression  has  made  much  of  our 
modern  book  work  decidedly  feminine.  This  feebleness  has 
been  attributed  wrongfully  to  the  type  or  to  the  press  and 
the  ink,  but  the  firmness  of  modern  presswork  is  not  now 
entirely  under  the  control  of  author,  publisher,  or  printer. 
Book  buyers  who  insist  on  cheap  books  support  the  paper- 
maker  in  asserting  incorrectly  that  his  low-grade  and  hastily 
made  paper  can  be  treated  by  the  printer  to  serve  the  purpose 

198 


Defects  caused  hy  hasie  and  economy 

of  the  best  paper.  The  artist  who  designs  and  the  engraver 
who  finishes  his  illustrations  for  books  claim  the  right  to 
control  the  measure  of  ink  and  the  amount  of  pressure  upon 
the  type  surrounding  the  pictures.  They  demand  that  pos- 
sibilities of  merit  in  an  illustration  shall  be  brought  out, 
even  if  the  clearness  of  type  has  to  be  dimmed.  Types  are 
subordinated  to  engravings.    The  printer  has  to  defer. 

The  readable  printing  of  old  time  is  not  produced  now 
because  it  is  not  desired.  It  is  not  necessary  to  examine 
old  books  for  specimens  of  really  masculine  presswork ;  the 
good  books  made  in  England  during  the  last  century  by 
Whittingham  and  Bulmer,  and  even  by  a  few  printers  in 
America,  will  as  clearly  prove  by  contrast  the  increasing 
paleness  and  effeminated  presswork  of  the  ordinary  modern 
book.  It  is  a  mistake  to  assume  that  typography  is  now 
in  its  dotage  and  unable  to  pursue  methods  that  have  been 
approved  for  centuries,  or  that  it  will  be  improved  by  imi- 
tating all  features  of  beauty  and  refinement  from  sister  arts 
that  are  radically  different  in  theory  and  practice.  The  de- 
fects of  modern  print  do  not  come  so  often  from  mean  type 
and  thin  ink  as  from  unfit  paper,  undue  haste,  and  feeble 
impression. 


199 


AUTHORITIES 


Bebnard,  Augustb.  De  rOrigiue  et  des  Debuts  de  I'lmprimerie  en  Europe. 

2  vols.,  8vo,  Paris,  1853. 

Bernard,  Augusts.  Histoire  de  I'lmprimerie  Royale  du  Louvre.  Svo,  Paris,  1867. 
Blades,  William.    The  Life  and  Typography  of  William  Caxton.    2  vols., 

4to,  London,  1861-63. 
Brunet,  Jacques-Charles.    Manuel  du  Libraire.    5th  edition,  12  vols., 

Svo,  Paris,  1860-65. 
Burger,  Conrad.  Index  to  Hain.    8vo,  Leipzig,  1891.    jSTew  edition,  1902. 
Claudin,  Anatole.  Les  Peregrinations  de  J.  Neumeister.  Svo,  Paris,  1880. 
CoPiNGER,  W.  A.    Incunablica  Biblica.    4to,  London,  1892. 
Copinger,  W.  a.    Supplement  to  Hain's  Repertorium  Bibliographicum. 

Part  II,  Vol.  II,  Svo,  London,  1902. 
Crapelet,  G.  a.  Etudes  pratiques  et  litteraires  sur  la  Typographic.  Svo, 

Paris,  1S37. 

DiDOT,  Ambroisb  Firmin-.  Aide  Manuce  et  I'Hellenisme  a  Venise.  Svo, 
Paris,  1875. 

Enschede,  Ch.  Fonderies  de  Caracteres.  Folio,  Haarlem,  1908. 
FouRNiER,  P.  S.  (Fournier  le  jeune).    Manuel  Typographique.    2  vols.,  small  Svo, 
Paris,  1764-66. 

FuMAGALLi,  GiusEPPL  Lexicou  Typographicum  Italise.    Dictionnaire  geographique 

d'ltalie.    Svo,  Florence,  1905. 
Greswell,  W.  p.    Annals  of  Parisian  Typography.  8vo,  London,  1818. 
Grbswell,  W.  p.    a  View  of  the  Early  Parisian  Greek  Press.  2  vols.,  Svo, 

Oxford,  1833. 

Haebler,  Konrad.  Typenrepertorium  der  Wiegendrucke.   Vol.  II,  Svo, 
Leipzig,  1908. 

Hain,  Ludovicus.  Repertorium  Bibliographicum.   2  vols,  in  4,  Svo, 
Stuttgart,  1826-38. 

Madden,  J.  P.  A.  Lettres  d'un  Bibliographe.  6  vols.,  royal  Svo,  Paris,  1868-78. 
Mellott^ib,  Paul.  Histoire  ^^conomique  de  I'lmprimerie.    Vol.  I,  Svo,  Paris,  1905. 
Moxon,  Joseph.    Mechanick  Exercises.    Vol.  II,  4to,  London,  1683. 

Vol.  I  (1677)  treated  of  carpenters' and  joiners'  work. 
Pollard,  A.  W.  (editor).    Catalogue  of  Books  Printed  in  the  Fifteenth  Century 

now  in  the  British  Museum.  Vol.  I,  large  4to,  London,  1908. 
Proctor,  Robert.    An  Index  to  the  Early  Printed  Books  in  the  British  Museum. 

3  vols.,  Svo,  London,  1898-1903. 

Rbbd,  Talbot  Baines.    A  History  of  the  Old  English  Letter  Foundries.  4to, 
London,  1887. 

Renouard,  a.  a.  Annales  de  I'lmprimerie  des  Aide.  2  vols.,  Svo,  Paris,  1803. 
RoosES,  Max.  Christophe  Plantin,  Imprimeur  Anversois.    Folio,  Anvers,  1882. 


INDEX 


INDEX 


Abbreviations,  149,  150,  178-181,  183;  ex- 
planations of,  179  (note) 
Academy  at  Venice,  108  {iiote) ;  reopened  by 

Paul  Manutius,  114 
Alcuin  of  York,  our  lower-case  character  trace- 
able to,  30,  32 
Aldine  type.    See  Italic  of  Aldus 
Aldus  Manutius.   See  Manutius,  Aldus 
Aleria,  Bishop  of,  editor  and  corrector  for 
Sweinheim  and  Pannartz,  44;  his  letter  to 
Sixtus  IV,  44;  to  Paul  II,  170  (note) 
Alexander  vi.  Pope,  and  Aldus,  107 
Alphabet,  Roman,  reformers  of,  19,  40;  meth- 
ods of  manuscript  book-makers,  24;  the  older 
forms  of,  29-32,  40.    See  also  Types 
Ambrecht,  John,  associate  of  Numeister,  117 
(note  1) 

American  Type  Founders '  Company,  point  sys- 
tem, 153 

Anisson  le  fils,  M.,  inventor  of  improved  hand 
press,  193  (note) 

Anthology  printed  at  Florence  (1494),  103 

Anthony,  St.   See  Antoninus 

Antoninus,  St.,  Confessionale  Volgare,  edition 
of  the  Eipoli  Press,  127 

Antwerp,  Plantin-Moretus  Museum  at,  exhibit 
of  types,  157 

Aretinus,  De  Belle  Italico,  edition  of  Numeis- 
ter, 117 

Aristotle,  edition  of  Aldus  Manutius,  101,  104, 
105  (note) 

Arnold  of  Brussels,  printer  at  Naples,  119 
Ashendene  Press  of  C.  H.  St.  John  Hornby,  40 
Augustine,  St.,  City  of  God,  edition  of  Swein- 
heim and  Pannartz,  42;  edition  of  John  and 
Wendelin  of  Speyer,  65;  edition  of  Miscomini, 
121 

Banco,  goldsmith  of  Florence,  127  (note) 
Barbatus,  Udalricus.    See  Eahn,  Vlric 
Bartholomew  di  Carlo,  printer  at  Venice,  82 
Bartholomew  of  Cremona,  printer  at  Venice, 
82,  173 

Bartolo,  bookseller  of  Florence,  127  (note) 
Bartua,  Petrus  de,  printer  at  Venice,  88 
Bastard  titles,  137,  138.    See  also  Title-pages 
Bazalerio,  Caligula,  printer  at  Bologna,  128 
Benvenuto,  goldsmith  of  Florence,  127  (note) 
Besicken,  John,  printer  at  Eome,  62 
Bible,  edition  of  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz,  45; 

edition  of  Eenner,  90,  173  (note)  ;  printed  in 

Hebrew,  99 ;  edition  of  Froschover,  138,  175 ; 

edition  of  Eobert  Stephens,  173  (note).  See 

also  following  editions 
Bible  of  Forty-two  Lines,  price  paid  for,  17 

(note)  ;  types  of,  18;  paper  in,  164  (note  2)  ; 

pinholes  in  presswork  of,  190  (note  2) 
Bible,  Polyglot,  edition  of  Plantin,  166  (note  1) 
Binding  of  earlybooks,16,22,26  (no<e),70,176 
Black-letter,  early  preference  for,  18,  19,  33, 

35,  37;  present  use,  19;  how  produced,  29,  30; 

an  early  form,  31;  Jenson  s,  74-76;  Torre- 


sano 's,  81 ;  Froben 's,  Eenner 's,  and  Eatdolt 's, 
99 ;  adaptability  to  compression,  99 ;  Numeis- 
ter's,  117.  See  also  White-letter 
Blaew,  Willem  Jansen,  mathematical  instru- 
ment maker  of  Amsterdam,  improves  con- 
struction of  hand  press,  190  (note  1),  193 
(note) 

Blauis,  Bartholomew  de,  printer  at  Venice,  79 
Boccaccio,    Giovanni,  Decameron,  edition  of 

Christopher  Valdarfer,  17  (note) 
Bodoni,  Giambattista,  types  of,  40,  136,  141 
Bologna,  printing  done  at,  128 
Bonaventure,  St.,  de  Lignamine 's  edition,  56 
Book-making,  15-20;  Italian  skill  in,  21-24, 

26,  33  (note) ;  an  attractive  industry,  181  (see 

also  note),  182 
Borders,   illuminated,   in  the   Sforziada,  26 

(note),  28;  engraved,  novelty  of,  85;  in  the 

de  Zanis  edition  of  Plutarch's  Lives,  98,  99, 

173;  in  Hebrew  Bible  printed  at  Soncino,  99 
Breviaries,  thoroughness  of  workmanship,  22 
Brown,  Horatio,  Venetian  Printing  Press,  74 

(note  2),  79,  106  (note  1),  143 
Brunet,  Jacques-Charles,  49,  64,  82 
Bucking,  Arnold,  association  with  Sweinheim, 

49 ;  publishes  Ptolemy 's  Geography,  52 
Bulle,  John,  of  Bremen,  printer  at  Eome,  62 
Bulmer,  William,  printer  of  England,  199 
Burger,  Conrad,  on  de  Libri,  181  (note) 
Burgo,  Pedro  Antonio  de,  associate  of  Zarotto, 

186 

Cadmus  face,  94  (note) 

Calderinus,  commentary  on  Juvenal's  Satires,  64 
Campanus,    John    Anthony,    corrector  for 

Ulric  Hahn,  53 
Capitals,  in  Italian  poetry,  24, 110 ;  replaced  by 

Caroline  minuscule  as  a  text  letter,  30;  early 

forms  of,  31 ;  merit  of  Sweinheim 's,  52 
Cappelli,  Adriano,  Dizionario  di  Abbreviature, 

179  (note) 

Carlo,  Bartholomew  di,  printer  at  Venice,  82 
Caroline  minuscules.   See  Minuscules 
Caslon  style  of  Eoman  type,  40,  136,  140 
Castaldi,  Pamfilo,  tradition  of,  33  (note) 
Catchwords,  175 

Caxton,  William,  prices  paid  for  books  printed 
by  him,  17  (note) ;  Eoman  types  not  used  by 
him,  19 

Chapter  headings,  176,  177 

Characters,  provision  of,  103, 149  (note  1),  180 

Chardella,  Simon  Nicolas,  printer  at  Eome, 
53,  54 

Charlemagne,  patron  of  Alcuin  of  York,  30 
Charles  vii,  King  of  France,  patron  of  Jenson, 
72 

Chevalon,  commends  Jenson  face,  78 
Cicero,  Marcus  TuUius,  30 ;  De  Oratore,  23,  37 
(note),  38;  edition  of  Hahn,  54;  Familiar 
Letters,  edition  of  John  and  Wendelin  of 
Speyer,  65;  edition  of  Numeister,  117  (note  1) ; 
De  Officiis,  edition  of  Sehoeffer,  172 


205 


Index 


Codrus,  Urceus,  critic  of  print,  105  {note) 
Cologne,  John  of.   See  John  of  Cologne 
Color  printing,  in  Eatdolt 's  books,  87;  early, 
81,  162 

Composition,  devices  to  compact,  70;  solidity, 
171;  leading,  171,  172;  huddling  of  lines  and 
words,  172;  spaces,  172;  avoidance  of  para- 
graphs, 98,  172,  173  {note) ;  poetry,  173, 
184;  title-pages,  137-140,  174,  175;  paging, 
catchwords,  and  signatures,  175,  176;  run- 
ning titles,  176;  chapter  headings,  176,  177; 
initials,  173,  177;  summaries  of  chapters,  177, 
178;  notes,  178;  abbreviations,  178-181, 
183;  ligatures,  179,  180;  proper  names,  181; 
ingenuity  shown  in,  182,  183;  trimness  and 
symmetry,  183,  184;  inaccuracy,  185;  a  part- 
nership agreement,  185,  186 

Compositors,  women  as,  182;  ingenuity  of 
early,  182,  183 

Contractions.    See  Abbreviations 

Copperplate  printing,  introduction  of,  in  Italy, 
45 ;  used  in  Ptolemy 's  Geography,  50,  52 ;  in- 
fluence on  type-founding,  132-136,  154,  155, 
197 ;  on  presswork,  198 

Copyists,  Italian,  21,  23,  24;  methods  of,  24, 
26,  29;  accept  Caroline  minuscule,  32;  prac- 
tices of,  103,  137,  167,  168,  171,  175-179 

Cost  Book  of  Eipoli  Press.   See  liipoli  Press 

Counterfeiters,  Aldus 's  protest  against,  108 

Cronica  Pontificum  Imperatorum  of  de  Ligna- 
mine,  56 

Cursives,  29,  31,  32 

Cylinder  press,  193,  196.  See  also  Pressivork 
Dance  of  Death,  193 

Dante  Alighieri,  Divine  Comedy,  edition  of  the 

Ashendene  Press,  40;  edition  of  Wendelin  of 

Speyer,  70 ;  edition  of  Aldus,  113 ;  edition  of 

Numeister,  117  {note  1) 
Decor  Puellarum,  book  of  wrong  date,  72 
Decoration,  early  printers  avoided  profuse,  23, 

26,  98,  150,  151 ;  Eatdolt 's  work,  87.  See  also 

Borders,  Design,  Initials 
Demetrius  of  Crete,  Greek  letters  made  by,  103 
Design,  artistic,  in  the  Sforziada,  28;  Man- 

tegna  a  master  of,  113 
D'Este,   Isabella,   patroness   of   Aldus,  111 

{note) 

Diagrams,  Eatdolt 's  admirable,  87 
Didot,  Ambroise  Firmin-,  40,  107  (noie),  111, 
141,  152 

Didot,  Pierre,  edition  of  Virgil,  111  {note) 
Diphthongs,  irregularly  used,  24,  150;  how 

they  arose,  148 ;  Wendelin 's  substitute,  180 
Dominic,   St.,   Order   of,   establishes  Eipoli 

Press,  127 

Dominic  of  Pistoia,  manager  of  the  Eipoli 

Press,  127 
Donatus  of  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz,  37 
Duns  Scotus.   See  Scott,  Dr.  John 
Durandus,  Gulielmus, edition  of  theEprinter,  20 
Diirer,  Albert,  his  rules  for  construction  of 

types,  149  {note  2) 

Ecclesiastics,  encourage  printing,  37,  42,  44, 
56,  60,  78,  107,  114,  127,  136  {note  2),  170 
{note)  ■  employed  as  editors  and  correctors, 
44,  53,  60 

Eggestein,  Heinrich,  printer  at  Strasburg,  33, 

164  {note  2) 
Elzevir  or  Cadmus  face,  94  {note) 


Elzevir,  Daniel,  his  edition  of  Livy,  143 
Elzevir  family,  the,  40,  94  {note) 
England,  introduction  of  Eoman  type,  19;  re- 
production of  the  Lactantius  face  of  type, 
40;  good  books  made  in,  199 
Engravers.    See  Punch-cutters 
Engravings,  wood.    See  Wood-engraving 
Enschede,  John,  type-founder  at  Haarlem,  154 
{note) 

Erasmus,  Desiderius,  his  explanation  of  Aldus 's 
device,  113;  his  views  of  correction  and  an- 
notation, 168,  185 

Estienne.   See  Stephens 

Euclid,  Geometry,  edition  of  Eatdolt,  87 

Eusebian  Monastery  at  Eome,  60 

Eusebius  of  Ceesarea,  Chronicles  of,  edition  of 
Eatdolt,  85,  171;  edition  of  Lavagna,  124 

Eyb,  Albertus  de,  edition  of  Ulric  Hahn,  54 

Eabriano,  reputation  for  paper-making,  110, 
111,  166  {note  3) 

Facsimiles  of  early  types,  often  unsatisfactory, 
13,  194  {note);  kinds  of,  needed,  14;  Black- 
letter,  18;  unequal  ability  displayed  in,  21, 
143,  153,  156,  185 

Ferdinand  i.  King  of  Naples,  his  approval  of 
Sixtus  Eiessinger,  119 

Fertel,  Martin  Dominique,  French  printer,  157 

Fifteenth-century  books,  types,  13,  14,  16,  18- 
20,  24,  34,  137-143,  157;  appearance,  15; 
standards  of  value,  16;  mannerisms,  17,  18; 
prices  paid  for  to-day,  17  {note) ;  classifica- 
tion, 21,  22;  survival  of  the  meritorious,  22; 
sizes,  22,  23,  70,  96,  105;  how  regarded  by 
early  collectors,  150,  151;  time  required  to 
produce,  170  {note) ;  sold  at  low  prices,  170 
{note) ;  number  produced,  181  (see  also 
note);  presswork,  194  {note).  See  also  Bind- 
ing, Illumination,  and  Types 

Fifteenth-century  printer  and  publisher,  duties 
of,  102 

Fineschi,  P.  Vincenzio,  his  book  on  the  Eipoli 
Press,  153 

Finiguerra,  Maso,  goldsmith  at  Florence,  45 
Firmin-Didot.   See  Didot 

Flach,  Martin,  his  book  of  explanations  of  ab- 
breviations, 179  {note) 
Florence,  printing  done  at,  121,  127,  181  {note) 
Florentinus,  Jacobus  Angelus,  translator  of 
Ptolemy,  49 

Foligno,  printing  done  at,  117 

Fortescue,  George  Knottesford,  on  the  number 
of  incunabula,  181  {note) 

Fossi,  bibliographer,  127  {note) 

Fournier,  Pierre-Simon  (Fournier  le  jeune), 
preferred  coppei-plate  to  wood-engraving, 
133;  systematic  grading  of  type  sizes  first 
devised  by,  152,  157  (see  also  note  2) 

Fraktur,  its  use  in  Germany,  19 

France,  types  of,  117,  130-136;  leads  in  print- 
ing in  the  sixteenth  century,  134 

Francis  i,  King  of  France,  patron  of  Gara- 
mond,  136  {note  1) 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  as  a  type-founder,  154 
{note) 

Freitag,  Andreas,  printer  at  Eome,  62 
Froben,  John,  -his  small  Black-letter,  99 
Froschover,  Christopher,  printer  at  Zurich,  138 
Fuller,  Thomas,  quoted,  164  {note  2) 
Fust,  John,  33  (see  also  note),  117;  mentioned 
by  de  Lignamiue,  56 


206 


Index 


Gaguin,  Robert,  quoted,  170  {note) 
Gallus.    See  Hahn,  Ulric 

Garamond,  Claude, ' '  father  of  type-founders, ' ' 
36,  40,  134-136,  156 

Gering,  Ulric,  printer  at  Paris,  19,  131,  172, 
178 

German  printers  in  Italy,  33,  35,  62 
Germany,  Roman  types  in,  20,  37  (?io<e)  ;  in- 
vention of  printing  in,  56,  65,  170  (note) 
Giunta,  printing  association  at  Florence,  imi- 
tate Aldus 's  Italic,  107 

Golden  Type  of  William  Morris,  74  (note  1) 
Goldsmiths,  as  punch-cutters,  106,  107,  112, 

127  (note)  ;  as  type-makers,  151,  156 
Gothic.   See  Black-letter  and  Bunic 
Granjon,  Robert,  type-founder  at  Lyons,  136 

(note  2) 

Gratianus,  Decretals,  164  (note  2) 

Greek  manuscripts,  irregularities  of,  103 

Greek  types,  103,  104,  111,  150 

Gregorii  Decretales,  edition  of  Torresano,  81, 

162  (see  also  note),  178,  180,  181 
Gronovius  (Johann  Friedrich  Gronov),  editor 

of  the  Elzevir  Livy,  143  (note) 
Grotesque  or  Sans-serif  type  of  England,  28 
Guldinbeck,  Bartholomew,  printer  at  Rome,  60, 

62 

Gutenberg,  John,  18,  33,  117;  mentioned  by  de 
Lignamine,  56 

Hahn,  Ulric,  printer  at  Rome,  14,  53,  54,  156 ; 
rival  of  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz,  42,  45 ; 
active  as  a  type-founder,  54;  possible  connec- 
tion with  Numeister,  117  (note  2) 
Hahn,  Wolff,  printer  at  Rome,  62 
Hand  press,  mechanism,  187,  188;  old  method 
of  printing  books,  188,  190,  191;  points,  190; 
limitations,  99,  191;  merits,  191,  192;  now 
made  of  iron,  192 ;  improvements  made  in, 
193  (note) ;  followed  by  Adams  press  and 
cylinder  press,  193.    See  also  Pressworh 
Hebrew  type  of  Soneino  (1488),  99 
Heinsius,  Nikolaas,  critic  of  types,  143  (note) 
Herbert,  John,  or  John  of  Selingenstadt,  asso- 
ciate of  Jenson,  78,  79,  162  (note) 
Herodotus,  edition  of  Rubeus,  92 
Herolt,  George,  printer  at  Rome,  14,  58,  156 
Hieronymi  Epistolae,  edition  of  Sweinheim  and 
Pannartz,  44,  45,  170  (note),  180;  edition  of 
Andrew  Torresano,  81 
Holywood,  John  (Saerobosco  Anglici),  edition 

of  Renner,  90 
Homer  of  Florence,  price  paid  for,  17  (note) 
Hornby,  C.  H.  St.  John,  40 
Hyphens,  irregularly  used,  24 
Hypnerotomachia,  edition  of  Aldus,  113 

Illumination,  23,  24,  26,  28,  194  (note) 
Imprimerie  Royale  at  Paris  (afterward  Im- 

primerie  Nationale),  136  (note  1) 
Incunabula.   See  Fifteenth-century  books 
Initials,  illuminated,  in  the  De  Oratore  of 
Cicero,  24;  engraved,  Ratdolt's,  85,  177;  de 
Zanis 's,  98,  173  ;  Renner 's,  98,  133 
Italian  Gothic  type,  70 

Italic,  of  Aldus,  106-110,  112;  Garamond,  136 
Italy,  early  proficiency  in  bookish  crafts,  21-24, 

26,  33  (note);  zeal  in  typography,  21,  26; 

printing  introduced  by  Germans,  33,  35,  62; 

its  rapid  progress,  34;  culminates  there  with 

Aldus,  134;  type-founding,  34,  35;  copper- 


plate printing  introduced,  45;  number  of 
books  produced  in,  181  (see  also  note) 

James,  John,  founder  at  London,  154  (note) 
Jenson,  Nicolas,  printer  at  Venice,  types,  14, 
36,  40,  74-76,  81,  82,  87,  99,  124,  136,  143, 
148,  150,  151,  180;  possible  German  training, 
33 ;  types  compared  with  those  of  Herolt,  58 ; 
of  John  and  Wendelin  of  Speyer,  66,  74; 
work  at  Venice,  72-78;  first  book,  72;  num- 
ber of  books  produced  by  him,  76;  partners 
and  allies,  76,  78;  merits  and  honors,  74 
(note  1),  78;  Torresano  his  practical  suc- 
cessor, 79 ;  his  presswork,  75,  76, 112,  161, 162 ; 
his  engraving  compared  with  copperplate,  132 
Jerome,  St.,  Epistles.    See  Hieronymi  Epistolm 
John  of  Cologne,  printer  at  Venice,  partner- 
ship with  Wendelin  of  Speyer,  68;  with  John 
Manthen,  68,  76,  78;  with  Jenson,  76,  78; 
discontinuance  of  activity,  79 
John  of  Mainz,  punch-cutter,  127  (note) 
John  of  Selingenstadt,  78,  79,  162  (note) 
John  of  Speyer,  printer  at  Venice,  65,  66;  his 
only  Roman  font,  66;  a  competitor  of  Jen- 
son, 72,  74;  his  type  compared  with  that  of 
Rubeus,  92;  his  types,  132,  143 
Johnson,  Dr.  Samuel,  his  preference  for  small 

books,  96 
Juvenal's  Satires  (1474),  64 

Keysere,  Peter,  printer  at  Paris,  170  (note) 
Koburger,  Anthony,  printer  of  Germany,  164 

(note  2),  192 
Kraft,  associate  of  Numeister,  117  (note  1) 

Lacolonge  type-foundry  at  Lyons,  136  (note  2) 
Lactantius  Firmianus,  edition  of  Sweinheim 
and  Pannartz,  17  (note),  37;  its  type  exam- 
ined, 38,  161 
Laetus,  Pomponius,  corrector  for  Lauer,  60 
Laire,  Frangois-Xavier,  History  of  the  Typog- 
raphy of  Rome,  58,  60 
Lauer,  George,  printer  at  Rome,  60 
Lavagna,  Filippo  de,  associate  of  Antonio  Za- 
rotto,  123;  associate  of  Valdarfer,  124 
Le  Febvre,  critic  of  types,  143  (note) 
Leonicenus,  Omnibonus,  credits  Jenson  with 

invention  of  printing,  74,  75 
Libri,  Bartolommeo  de,  printer  at  Florence,  181 
(note) 

Lignamine,  John  Philip  de,  printer  at  Rome,  56 

Literature,  lost  children  of,  17 

Livy,  edition  of  John  and  Wendelin  of  Speyer, 
65,  66,  143,  173  (note)  ;  edition  of  Daniel  El- 
zevir, 143 

Logotypes,  survivors  of  graces  of  penmanship, 

148,  179,  180 
L6.slein,  Peter,  associate  of  Ratdolt,  87 
Lower-case  letters,  Roman,  development  of,  30, 

31;  when  first  cast,  37;  Ulric  Hahn 's,  54; 

Herolt 's,  58.    ^ee  a\so  Alphabet 
Lyra,  Nicolas  de,  45;  Postils,  edition  of  Ulric 

Gering,  131,  172,  180 

Madden,  J.  P.  A.,  33,  37  (note),  72,  170  (note) 
Mainz,  dispersion  of  printers  from,  33,  37 

(note)  ;  invention  of  printing  in,  56,  65 
Mainz,  John  of,  127  (note) 
Majuscule  scripts  (quotation  of  Dr.  Taylor),  32 
Maler,  Bernhard,  associate  of  Ratdolt,  87 
Mantegna,  Benedetto,  a  master  of  design,  113 


207 


Index 


Manthen,  John,  partnership  with  Wendelin  of 
Speyer,  68 ;  with  John  of  Cologne,  68,  76,  78 ; 
with  Jenson,  76,  78;  discontinuance  of  activ- 
ity, 79 

Manuscript  books,  abundant,  22;  De  Oratore 
of  Cicero,  23;  copied  by  printers,  23,  26,  35, 
155;  graces  of  penmanship  generally  neg- 
lected by  type-makers,  24,  26,  131,  148-150; 
methods  of  making,  24,  29;  irregularities  of 
Greek,  103;  preference  for,  150,  151.  See 
also  Illumination 

Manutius,  Aldus,  printer  at  Venice,  24;  small 
type  and  small  leaf  made  popular  by,  96; 
early  life  and  marriage,  100,  101;  activity  as 
a  publisher,  101-105;  Greek  types,  103,  104, 
111;  industry  as  an  editor,  104;  Italic  type, 
106-110,  112;  introduces  small  capitals,  106; 
adopts  octavo  page,  106  (see  also  note  2) ; 
price  of  his  octavos,  111  {note) ;  protest 
against  counterfeiters,  108  (see  also  note)  ; 
Eoman  types,  40,  111,  112;  type-founding  his 
ruling  passion.  111;  paper  used  by.  111 
(note);  presswork,  112;  type  metal,  112 
(note);  device,  113;  death,  113;  successors, 
114;  removal  of  his  sons  to  Eome,  62,  107, 
114;  printing  in  Italy  culminates  with,  134 

Manutius,  Paul,  son  of  Aldus  Manutius,  pub- 
lished valuable  books,  114 

Maps,  engraving  and  printing  of,  49-52 

Marehand,  Prosper,  cited,  185 

Matthias  of  Olmiitz,  printer  at  Naples,  119 

Maximis,  Peter  de,  patron  of  Pannartz,  46 

Mellottee,  Paul,  facsimiles  of  Garamond's 
type,  136 ;  on  methods  of  conducting  early 
printing  houses,  185 

Mentel,  John,  printer  at  Strasburg,  33;  men- 
tioned by  de  Lignamine,  56;  pinholes  in 
presswork  of,  191  (note) 

Milan,  printing  done  at,  123,  124 

Minuscules,  Latin,  stages  in  evolution  of,  31; 
Caroline,  21,  30-32.    See  also  Alphabet 

Miscomini,  Antonio,  printer  at  Venice  and 
Florence,  14,  121,  156 

Moravus,  Matthias,  printer  at  Naples,  119 

Morris,  "William,  Golden  Type,  74  (note  1) 

Moxon,  Joseph,  preferred  copperplate  to  wood- 
engraving,  133 ;  his  opinion  of  old  hand  press, 
187,  190  (note  1) 

Miiller,  John,  Calendarium,  Eatdolt 's  edition,  85 

Naples,  printing  done  at,  58,  119 
Nicolaus  of  Frankfort,  partner  of  Eenner,  88 
Nonpareil  type  (6-point),  made  before  1500,  99 
Notes,  composition  of,  64,  81,  94,  131,  172, 

178,  180,  181 
Numeister,  John,  printer  at  Foligno,  Albi,  and 

Lyons,  33,  117;  his  types,  132 

Old  English  type,  used  in  books  of  devotion,  19 
Old-style  Antique,  type  of  John  of  Speyer,  66 
Olmiitz,  Matthias  of.  See  Moravus,  Matthias 
Opus  mallei,  a  goldsmith's  process,  50 
Origenis  Prooemium  contra  Celsum,  etc.,  edi- 
tion of  Herolt,  58 
Ornament,  avoidance  of,  by  early  printers,  23, 

151.    See  also  Decoration 
Orsinis,  Emilianus  de,  associate  of  Numeister, 

117  (see  also  note  2) 
Ovid,  edition  of  Aldus,  111  (note) 

Paccioli  of  Naples,  attempts  to  give  types 
"divine  proportion,"  149  (note  2) 


Paganino,  Alessandro,  printer  at  Venice,  106 
(note  1) 

Palseographical  Society,  MSS.  published  by,  31 
Pannartz,  Arnold,  his  partnership  with  Conrad 
Sweinheim,  37-46;  partnership  dissolved,  46, 
49;  his  last  type,  46.    See  also  Sweinheim  and 
Pannartz 

Paper,  size  of  sheets,  22,  23,  49;  cheapness  in 
fifteenth  century,  22,  170;  sized  and  unsized, 
52,  111  (note),  164,  165;  small  leaf  made 
popular  by  Aldus,  96;  use  by  Aldus,  111 
(note) ;  use  in  the  Far  East,  163;  satin,  163; 
cotton,  163,  165;  linen,  164,  166;  sizing,  164; 
"laid,"  164  (note  2)  ;  different  qualities  of, 
164  (note  2),  168,  169;  grass  and  wood,  165; 
vellum  and  parchment,  163,  166 ;  kinds  sup- 
plied to  early  Italian  printers,  166 ;  deckle  or 
ragged  edges,  166-168;  hand-made  and  its 
imitations,  166-170;  inferior  printing  pro- 
duced by  inferior,  168,  196;  examined  by 
German  experts,  169;  tests  by  presswork 
needed,  170;  unfit,  196,  199;  coated,  198 

Paragraphs,  early  neglect  of,  98,  172,  173 
(note) ;  method  of  indicating,  174,  175 

Paravisinus  of  Milan,  Greek  grammar  printed 
by,  103 

Paris,  Jenson 's  connection  with,  72;  connec- 
tion of  Torresano,  79;  graceful  Roman  types 
first  appeared  in,  134 
Partnership,  summary  of  an  agreement,  186 
Paterbonis,  Mapheus  de,  associate  of  Torre- 
sano, 79 

Paul  II,  Pope,  patron  of  printing,  170  (note) 
Penmanship,  Italian,  delicacy  of,  24,  88 
Perrin,  Louis,  printer  at  Lyons,  136  (note  2) 
Peter,  John,  type-maker  at  Florence,  33 
Peter  of  Pisa,  associate  of  Dominic  of  Pistoia, 
127 

Petrarch  (Francesco  Petrarca),  his  handwrit- 
ing the  model  for  Aldus 's  Italic,  106,  110 
Petrus  de  Bartua,  associate  of  Eenner,  88 
Pfliigl,  Leonard,  associate  of  Lauer,  60 
Phalaridis  Epistolje,  edition  of  Sixtus  Riessin- 

ger,  119  (see  also  note) 
Photo-engraving,  influence  on  printing,  198, 199 
Pinson,  William,  introduces  Eoman  type  into 

England,  19 
Pistoia.    See  Dominic  of  Pistoia 
Pius  IV,  Pope,  patron  of  printing,  114 
Plannck,  Stephan,  Hahn's  successor,  62 
Plantin,  Christopher,  uses  a  Granjon  style  of 
type,  136  (note  2) ;  edition  of  Polyglot  Bible, 
166(?!0fe  1);  improves  his  presses,  193  (note) 
Platina,  Bartholomew,  corrector  for  Lauer,  60 
Pliny  (Caius  Plinius  Seeundus),  Natural  His- 
tory, edition  of  John  and  Wendelin  of  Speyer, 
65 

Plutarch's  Lives,  edition  of  de  Zanis,  98,  99, 

155,  173  (see  also  note),  174  (note) 
Poetry,  composition  of,  94,  173,  184 
Point,  a  modern  unit  of  measure  for  types,  38 

(note),  152,  153 
Pollard,   Alfred   William,   quoted,   168,  181 
(note),  182  (note),  190  (note  2),  194  (note) 
Polyphilus,  Eeveries  of,  Aldus 's  experiment,  113 
Presswork,  159,  161;  color  printing,  87,  162; 
black  or  pale  print,  161,  162;  red  ink,  162; 
tests  by,  to  prove  adaptability  of  paper,  170; 
output,    182    (note),    188,    190,    196;  old 
method,  188,  190,  191,  194;  use  of  pinholes, 
190  (see  also  note  2),  191;  the  factor  that 


208 


Index 


produces  neat,  192;  in  incunabula,  194 
{note)  ;  present-day  methods,  194,  196-199 ; 
influence  of  copperplate  printing  on,  198.  See 
also  Aldus,  Jenson,  Eenner,  Torresano 

Prevost,  Jacques,  commends  Jenson  types,  78 

Printing,  early,  17,  18,  21;  brought  to  Italy 
by  Germans,  33,  35,  62;  rapid  progress  in 
Italy,  34 ;  Jenson  wrongly  credited  with  in- 
vention, 75 ;  no  lack  of  mechanical  skill  in, 
102;  editorial  ability  needed,  103;  culmi- 
nates in  Italy  with  Aldus,  134;  leadership  of 
France,  134;  low  in  the  artistic  scale,  150; 
separation  from  type-founding,  156.  See 
also  Composition,  Copperplate  printing, 
PressworTc,  Type-founding,  Typography 

Printing  houses,  in  Rome,  60;  in  Venice,  92; 
methods  of  conducting  early,  185,  186 

Printing  ink,  experience  in  presswork  needed 
in  compounding,  159;  constituents  in  early, 
160;  compounding  of,  now  a  separate  trade, 
161;  compounding  of  colored,  162;  leather 
balls  used  in  inking,  162 

Proof-reading,  185 

Proper  names,  lack  of  uniformity  in  spelling, 
181 

Psalter  of  1457,  price  paid  for,  17  {note) 
Ptolemy's  Geography,  edition  of  Sweinheim, 
46,  49-52 

Punch-cutters,  goldsmiths  as,  106,  107,  112, 
127  {note)  ;  Eaibolini,  106,  107,  112;  John  of 
Mainz,  127  {note).    See  also  Type-founders 

Punch-cutting,  66,  151,  153-155;  compression 
in,  96.    See  also  Type-founding 

Quadragesimale  de  penitentia,  edition  of  Een- 
ner, 88,  133 

Quintilian,  edition  of  Jenson,  74,  75,  148,  161, 
173  {note) 

E  printer,  his  Eoman  type,  20 ;  at  Strasburg,  33 

Eaibolini,  Francesco,  goldsmith  and  punch- 
cutter  at  Venice,  106,  107,  112 

Earity  a  standard  of  value,  16 

Eatdolt,  Erhard,  printer  at  Venice,  36,  40,  85- 
87;  superiority  as  a  type-founder,  14,  87  (see 
also  note),  151,  155,  156;  engraved  borders 
and  initials,  85 ;  color  printing,  87,  98 ;  Black- 
letter  type,  99;  Eoman  types.  111,  134,  156; 
engraving  compared  with  copperplate,  132; 
capitals,  171 

' '  Eeal  character, ' '  19 

Redgrave,  Charles  T.,  commends  Eatdolt 's  type- 
founding,  87 
Eeferenee  marks,  64,  131,  173 
Eeinhard,  John,  printer  at  Eome,  62 
Eenner,  Franz,  printer  at  Venice,  14,  36,  40, 
88-90,  155;  most  characteristic  type,  88,  134, 
151;  large  Roman,  90,  156;  Latin  Bible  in 
Gothic  type,  90,  173  {note)  ;  engraved  ini- 
tials, 98,  133;  Black-letter  type,  99;  press- 
work,  112;  engraving  compared  with  copper- 
plate, 132,  133 
Eichel,  Bernhard,  printer  of  Basle,  164  {note  2) 
Eiessinger,  Sixtus,  printer  at  Naples,  58,  119 
Eipoli  Press,  printing  house  at  Florence,  121, 
127;  Cost  Book  of,  153,  160,  166,  182;  names 
and  prices  of  metals  used  in  type-foundry  of, 
153 ;  ingredients  of  ink  used  by,  160 ;  papers 
used  by,  166;  presses  used  by,  192 
Eoman  type,  preference  for,  19,  29,  35;  intro- 
duction into  England,  19;   disapproved  in 


Germany,  20;  faces  and  bodies  of,  21,  69; 
why  so  named,  30;  resisted  by  Black-letter, 
32;  disadvantages  of,  35,  36,  75;  first  cast  at 
monastery  of  Subiaco,  37 ;  efforts  to  improve 
face,  40;  Caslon  face,  40,  136,  140;  compres- 
sion of,  69,  99;  reconstruction  of,  134;  Gara- 
mond's,  136;  Granjon's,  136  {note  2);  Jen- 
son's,  14,  75,  76,  148;  John  of  Speyer's,  66; 
Miscomini's,  121;  Eatdolt 's.  111,  134,  156; 
Renner's,  90,  156;  Zarotto 's,  28,  124 

Eome,  types  of,  37-64;  printing  houses  at, 
60 ;  production  of  its  printers,  62 

Eood,  Theodore,  printer  at  Oxford,  78 

Eot,  Adam,  printer  at  Eome,  62 

Eubeus,  Jacob,  printer  at  Venice,  64,  92 

Eunic  or  Gothic  type  of  America,  28 

Running  titles,  173,  174,  176 

Rustic  capitals,  29,  31 

Sacrobosco,  Johannes  de,  or  John  Holywood,  90 
Sans-serif  type,  28 

Santander,  Charles-Antoine  La  Serna  de,  65 
Sardini,  on  Jenson 's  productivity,  76 
Sehoeffer,  Peter,  printer  at  Mainz,  33;  edition 
of  Cicero's  De  Ofificiis,  172;  pinholes  in  press- 
work,  191  {note) 

School-books,  22,  37,  87,  103,  127 
Schott,  John,  German  printer  in  Italy,  33 
Schurener,  John,  printer  at  Rome,  62 
Scott,  Dr.  John,  Four  Books  of  Sentences, 

edition  of  Wendelin  of  Speyer,  69,  70,  181; 

Third  Book  of  Sentences,  edition  of  Jenson,  76 
Scotus,  John  Duns.    See  Scott,  Dr.  John 
Selingenstadt,  John  of,  associate  of  Jenson, 

78,  79,  162  {note) 
Semigothic  type,  34;  of  Ulric  Gering,  19;  of 

the  E  printer,  20 
Semiroman  type,  34;  of  TJlric  Hahn,  54 
Sforziada,  edition  of  Antonio  Zarotto,  26  (see 

also  note),  28,  124  {note) 
Shakspere,  First  and  Third  Folios,  price  paid 

for,  17  {note) 
Signs,  medical  and  astronomical,  150 
Siiber,  Eucharius,  printer  at  Rome,  62 
Silius  Italieus,  Caius,  edition  of  de  Tortis,  94, 

172,  173,  180 
Simonetta,  Giovanni,  Sforziada,  edition  of  An- 
tonio Zarotto,  26  {note),  124  {note) 
Sixtus  IV,  his  approval  of  Sweinheim  and  Pan- 

nartz,   44 ;    patron    of   de   Lignamine,   56 ; 

commended  Jenson,  78 

Size  of  early  books,  22,  23,  44,  49,  69,  70,  81, 

96,  105,  106  (see  also  note),  140 
Sizes  of  types.    See  Types 
Small  capitals,  introduced  by  Aldus,  106 
Soneino,  Girolamo,  issues  imitated  edition  of 

Aldus 's  Virgil,  107 
Soneino,  its  famous  Bible,  99 
Sophologium,  edition  of  the  R  printer,  37  {note) 
Speyer,  early  practice  of  printing,  65 
Stanhope,  Charles,  third  Earl,  his  press,  192 
Statins,  Publius  Papinius,  edition  of  Aldus, 

108-110,  112 
Statuta  et  Decreta  Communis  Genuae,  edition 

of  Caligula  Bazalerio,  128 
Stephan,  associate  of  Numeister,  117  {note  1) 
Stephens,  Robert,  edition  of  Bible,  173  {note) 
Stephens  family,  the,  40 
Stol,  John,  printer  at  Paris,  170  {note) 
Subiaco,  monastery  of,  Roman  lower-case  first 

cast  there  by  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz,  37 


209 


Index 


Summa  Oratorum  Omnium,  edition  of  Ulric 

Hahn,  54 
Superiors,  64,  70,  131,  173 

Sweinheim,  Conrad,  his  partnership  with  Ar- 
nold Pannartz,  37-46;  punch-cutting,  45,  46, 
50,  52,  132;  capitals,  52;  Arabic  figures,  52, 
150 ;  neat  work  on  Ptolemy 's  Geography,  49, 
50,  52;  associated  with  Bucking,  49-52.  See 
also  Sweinheim  and  Pannartz 

Sweinheim  and  Pannartz,  printers  at  Subiaeo 
and  Eome,  Eoman  lower-case  first  cast  by, 
37;  their  types  examined,  37,  38,  42,  44,  143; 
list  of  books  published  by,  44,  45;  their  cor- 
rector, 44,  185;  failure  at  Eome,  44,  69.  See 
also  Pannartz,  Arnold,  and  Sweinheim,  Conrad 

Table-work,  approved,  85 

Taylor,  Dr.  Isaac,  The  Alphabet,  quoted,  30-32 
Theocritus,  texts  of,  consulted  by  Aldus,  104 
Thesaurus  of  Aldus,  extract  from  preface,  105 
Theseus  and  the  Minotaur,  an  early  ItaHan 
woodcut,  98,  173 
Thomas  Aquinas,  St.,  Questiones  de  Veritate, 
edition  of  Pannartz,  46.    See  also  Scott 
Time  required  to  produce  written  and  printed 
books,  170  {note) 
Title-pages,  development  of,  137-140, 174,  175 
Torresano,  Andrew,  praise  of  Jenson,  78;  pub- 
lisher at  Venice,  79-81;  presswork,  81,  113, 
162    {note)  ;    connection  with  Aldus,   101 ; 
death,  114 

Tortis,  Baptista  de,  printer  at  Venice,  94-96, 

143,  172,  173,  178,  180 
Tory,  Geofroy,  40,  149  {note  2)  ;  his  influence 

on  Claude  Garamond,  136  {note  1) 
Trot,  Bartholomew,  counterfeiter  of  Aldus 's 

Virgil,  108 

Turrecremata,  Johannes  de.  Meditations,  edi- 
tion of  Ulric  Hahn,  53,  54;  edition  of  Nu- 
meister,  117  {note  2) 

Type-founders,  neglect  graces  of  penmanship, 
24,  26,  131,  148-150;  masters,  40;  goldsmiths 
as,  151,  156 

Type-founding,  in  Italy,  34-36;  casting  of 
first  Eoman  lower-case,  37;  early  deficiency, 
40,  42,  157 ;  increased  skill  in,  94 ;  Aldus 's 
ruling  passion.  111;  influence  of  copperplate 
printing  on,  132-136,  154,  155,  197;  im- 
provements of  Garamond  and  Granjon,  134- 
136;  in  Laeolonge  foundry,  136  {note  2); 
manipulations  required,  147;  type-easting, 
147,  155,  157;  simplicity  of  design  fa- 
vored, 148;  Dlirer's  rules,  149  {note  2);  no 
record  of  experiments  with  types,  151,  152; 
systematic  grading  of  sizes,  152,  153;  mold- 
making,  152;  metals  used  in,  112  {note),  153; 
cheapening  of  methods  and  materials,  154; 
vogue  of  light  and  bold  faces,  155;  its  honor 
roll,  156;  tools  in  use  to-day,  196 

Types  of  early  books,  13,  14,  16,  18-20,  24, 
34,  157;  meritorious,  14;  sizes  of,  21,  54,  69, 
99,  137-143,  152,  155;  manuscript  letters 
copied,  23,  24,  35,  155;  adherence  to  estab- 
lished forms,  28;  manufacture  in  Italy,  34, 
35 ;  crudity,  40,  143 ;  legibility,  66 ;  Hebrew, 
99;  Greek,  103,  104,  150;  critics  of,  143 
{note)  ;  discretion  needed  in  designing,  149 ; 


provision  of  characters,  149  {note  1),  180; 
"divine  proportion,"  149  {note  2);  Diirer's 
rules  for  construction  of,  149  {note  2)  ;  ex- 
perimental, 152;  ruggedness,  153,  154  (see 
also  note);  exhibit  at  Antwerp,  157;  inking, 
160,  161;  a  safe  guide  in  determining  pater- 
nity of  books,  181  {note)  ;  of  modern  book, 
196,  197;  feminine,  197.  See  also  Blaclc- 
letter,  Caslon,  Elzevir,  Fraltur,  France, 
Golden,  Grotesque,  Italian  Gothic,  Italic, 
Nonpareil,  Old  English,  Old-style  Antique, 
Point,  Roman,  Borne,  Runic,  Semigothic, 
Semiroman,  Venice,  and  under  names  of 
printers 

Typography,  Italy's  zeal  in,  21,  26;  limita- 
tions of,  26 ;  beauty  and  accuracy  of  Italian, 
33  {note)  ;  profit  from,  34 ;  reputed  cradles 
of,  65;  feminine  style  of,  133,  197-199;  im- 
perfections in,  196;  cause  of  defects,  154 
{note),  168,  199;  most  useful  with  movable 
letters,  198;  influence  of  photo-engraving, 
198,  199.    See  also  Printing 

Uncials,  29,  31,  32 

Valdarfer,  Christopher,  printer  at  Venice  and 

Milan,  17  {note),  124 
Valla,  Laurentius,  de  Lignamine's  edition,  56 
Van  Dijck,  Christopher,  type-founder,  40,  136 
Vatican,  printing  house  of  the,  136  {note  2) 
Venice,  types  of,  65-115,  121;  inducements  to 

printers,  72;  editions  printed  at,  181 
Vindominus,  Ant.  Maria,  at  Bologna,  128 
Virgil,  or  Vergil  (Publius  Vergilius  Maro), 
price  paid  for  Aldus 's  edition,  17  {note)  ;  edi- 
tion of  Bartholomew  of  Cremona,  82,  173; 
edition  of  Aldus  in  Italic  type,  106,  112;  edi- 
tion of  Pierre  Didot,  111  {note) 
' '  Visual  alphabet, ' '  19 
Vitre,  Antoine,  quoted,  136  {note  1) 

Walker,  Emery,  engraver  of  tjrpe,  40 

Wendelin  of  Speyer,  printer  at  Venice,  65, 
68-70,  181;  partnership  \\-ith  John  of  Co- 
logne and  John  Manthen,  68,  76;  types,  70, 
132,  143 ;  a  competitor  of  Jenson,  72,  75 

White-letter,  resisted  by  Black-letter,  32.  See 
also  Roman  type 

Whittingham,  Charles,  Caslon  style  revived 
by,  40 ;  masculine  presswork  of,  199 

Wila,  Wendelinus  de,  printer  at  Eome,  64 

Wilkins,  John,  his  "real  character,"  19 

Women  as  compositors,  182 

Wood-engraving,  early  Italian,  87,  98,  112, 
173;  new  style  introduced  at  Florence,  133; 
follows  introduction  of  copperplate  printing, 
154;  superseded  by  photo-engraving,  198 

Zainer,   Gunther,   printer   of   Germany,  164 

{note  2) 

Zanis,  Bartholomew  de,  early  user  of  smaller 
type,  96,  143,  155;  at  Venice,  98,  99;  wood- 
engraving,  98,  173  (see  also  note),  174  {note) 

Zarotto,  Antonio,  printer  at  Milan,  26,  28,  123, 
124;  agreement  between  him  and  his  asso- 
ciates, 123,  185,  186 

Zenobi,  bookseller  of  Florence,  127 


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